Silver Petals
by Shapeshifter99
Summary: Season one, but with an added character. Hane, a she-wolf, has been living in Freeze City for two years now, wandering without purpose or hope of meeting more wolves. But when she does, she is tossed into a whirlwind journey with four others in a search for Paradise! Tsume x OC. Rating may change later on, but for now it's just a T for violence. Alternate ending.
1. Chapter 1

**Goodness, could it be? Why yes, Shapeshifter99 WROTE A FANFIC! Heya guys! Thought I should take up writing fanfics again, and I've been watching Wolf's Rain a lot recently, so I decided to write a story, but with an added female character! She's also a wolf, and her name's Hane, which means 'feather' in Japanese. Just to put it out there, in terms of dialogue, italics is when Hane is thinking, italics with quotation marks is when they're talking as wolves and normal dialogue is when humans are speaking/the wolves are in human form! Not a lot happens to Hane during the first episode, but it's important for backstory and her meeting with Tsume! Enjoy!**__

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_**Freeze City**_

Petrichor. She missed the smell of petrichor. The smell of dust after rain. But it never rained, not here, because of that damned glass dome. She glared upwards at the glass arching high above her head, hands shoved into her pockets.

Hane had been living in Freeze City for over two years now; but still, every once in awhile she would just have a bad day and decide that she hated the world. Luckily for anyone who happened to cross her path, this was one of those days.

She scuffed the filthy pavement beneath her foot before continuing on her way, dark chocolate brown hair falling in front of her face as she bent her head. If any of these humans had been smart enough, they would have been able to see past the shell that was her human form, and see the dark brown she-wolf that lay beneath. But, obviously, that wasn't going to happen, since humans were too dumb to see anything past their own noses.

For them, if they even bothered to look her way, they would only see a fierce-looking girl about nineteen years old, with chest-length wavy dark brown hair tied back in a braid and light green eyes dressed in a dark grey tank top, a leather jacket, black pants and lace-up, high-heeled boots that rose up to her knees (they happened to be especially useful when it came to kicking people, she had recently learned).

Hane let out a sigh. To be honest, her problem was that she was lonely. She had come here searching for the lunar flower, certain in her purpose, and eager to meet the other wolves she was sure had flocked here. But all she had found was misery and filth.

Glancing around to make sure no one was watching, she leapt gracefully onto one of the many stone catwalks which linked the buildings of Freeze City, her feet barely making a sound as she landed. She continued to leap upwards, suddenly unable to bear the insufferable stink of the city's alleyways.

She finally vaulted up onto the edge of the building, her keen eyes already seeking out the far end of the domed city. For a moment, just for a moment, she let the illusion slip away, suddenly able to feel the hard cement underneath padded paws instead of feet. Hane sighed in relief. It wasn't that she didn't mind being a human; in fact, it sometimes felt even more comfortable to her, a feeling of protection rising every time she changed appearance.

Her green-eyed gaze shifted, instead turning towards the ruined part of the city. It was nice in a way, feeling ancient and just a little bit familiar at the same time. Not to mention she had picked up the traces of another wolf's scent around there once. But, try as she might, her nose wasn't good enough to track the faint trail to its source, and she had given up once night had fallen. Speaking of which...

Hane stared upwards, at the setting sun. It was only a faint orange glow behind the clouds, and she suppressed a sigh. Sometimes, if she was lucky, she was able to catch a few rays of moonlight, but judging by the weather 'outside', it wasn't likely that wasn't going to happen tonight. She covered herself with the illusion again, suddenly standing on two feet as she continued to gaze upwards.

_What has this world come to?_ She thought suddenly. _What have I come to? Skulking around, stealing food from humans. I'm no better than they are!_

"No more hanging around." she said suddenly, fiercely.

And in a heartbeat, she was gone, headed towards the ruined part of the city.

_**That night, in the Ruins of Freeze City...**_

Hane crept around a large chunk of stone that had fallen from a building, her nose twitching as she tried to track down a scent of, well... Anything, really. Despite her original suspicions, the ruins covered a much more vast area than she had first thought, and she had been circling around it for a few hours now. She had started going in inward, using catwalks and fallen pillars to make the way easier for her.

She raised her muzzle and sniffed again. She had reverted back to her wolf form, certain that it was safe to go gallivanting off like this. Her nose twitched once, twice, and the she-wolf sneezed.

_"Stupid dust."_ she murmured to herself.

Raising her head, she spotted a tree looming in the distance, its roots tangled and disappearing piles of stone. She broke into a trot, her paws making small clouds of dust rise behind her. She glanced down, her muzzle twisting into a slight grimace. Her legs, like her muzzle, ears and the end of her tail, were a darker shade of brown, closer to black than the rest of her pelt, which was the color of dark chocolate. But right now, her furry legs were covered with fine, sand-colored dust.

_"Yuck."_ she whined out loud, lifting a paw and shaking it once. When the stone powder didn't come off, she let out a dejected sigh, and continued on her way.

She walked carefully, mindful that if she slipped and fell, there was only a fall awaiting her, pausing only once as she smelled the air again. Her eyes widening, she inhaled the scent of blood-wolf's blood! A worried whimper rising in her throat, she leapt once, landing instantly at the top of the hill. She could see splatters of blood on the ground, but on further inspection, she realized it was human.

She glanced around, searching for the source of the scent. Spotting a hollow at the base of the large tree, she padded towards it, her muzzle lowered to the ground. Her sharp eye-sight spotted more dark stains covering the stone inside it, and it was definitely wolf...

Hane lifted her head, inhaling deeply. The smell of humans pervaded the area, but when she concentrated, she could scent something else; one scent was the same as that of the blood, but there was another, more familiar. With a start, she realized it was the same scent as that she had smelled weeks earlier.

She was about to track down the scent when the murmur of voices reached her ears. Head snapping up, she narrowed her green-gold eyes. The humans she had smelled were coming back!

_Dammit!_ She growled to herself._ I should have been paying more attention!_

Still cursing her stupidity, Hane ran, keeping her body close to the ground as she raised her illusion. In a heartbeat, her booted feet were click-clacking against the cement catwalk beneath her as she raced away.

"Hey, what's that over there?!" someone hollered behind her.

There was a sharp cracking sound, and Hane skidded before changing directions, the bullet that had been aimed for her embedding itself in a wall. Her heartbeat sped up, both with the thrill of the chase and fear. She dared a glance back over her shoulder, knowing full well that the possibility of her tripping and falling was... Well, very high. She only managed to get a glimpse of her hunters, two humans with what seemed like rifles in their hands. Behind them, she could see a larger group, clustered around the base of the tree as they stared after her. And at the top... Hane only had the time to see tan skin and cold golden eyes before her sight was blocked by a wall. There was the muffled sound of an argument, probably about whether or not they should go after her, Hane guessed, then silence.

The she-wolf let out a sigh of relief, but didn't stop running until she was a fair distance away. It was only until she was at the outskirts of the ruins that she slowed down. Panting slightly, she used the wall to support herself. She, like most other wolves, had a lot of stamina and strength, but the long sprint had left her slightly winded.

Once her breathing and heartbeat evened out, Hane lifted her head, eyes glittering with determination and surprised pleasure. She wasn't alone after all... There were others like her! But she hadn't been able to make out if either of the two wolves she had been tracking down, but it was altogether possible that the brief glimpse she had gotten of the humans had prevented her from spotting one of them. Hane felt a slight tremor of fear run down her spine as she remembered the harsh yellow eyes she had seen, but she pushed it away. She wasn't known for being a chicken just because some human's stare had creeped her out!

She sat down, her back leaning against the wall. "There are other wolves." she said softly. "I'm not... I'm not alone."

She let out a breathless laugh, the first sign of any happiness she had shown since coming to this goddamn city. To be honest, Hane felt like howling her head off with suppressed joy, but there were still humans around, and she needed to find the wolves she'd smelled.

She stood up, shoving her hands into her pockets as she tried to suppress her smile. Despite her joy, she knew that showing any particular type of emotion would attract attention... Extreme anger, sadness, happiness... Some human was bound to notice, and ask questions. So Hane had gotten into the habit of putting on an expressionless facade, keeping humans from approaching her.

She took to the streets this time, wary of what could happen if she used the catwalks again. She felt a rush of pity as she saw some of the poorer humans who inhabited the city curling up to each other for warmth, their clothes ragged and their eyes blazing with a certain insanity that only those who had lost everything understood. Hane glanced away quickly as one of them looked up at her; a little boy, his amber eyes filled with despair and a longing for peace.

She quickened her pace, the click-clacking of her heels becoming louder as she kept her eyes fixed on the path ahead.

"Heeeeey, babe!" A smooth, drawling voice said from behind her.

Hane smelled the air; human. "Get lost." She said without turning around.

"Aw, come on, don't be like that!" Hane felt a hand on her shoulder, spinning her around. She was faced with a smirking young man, probably about twenty-something in human years with greasy black hair and pitch black eyes.

She jerked away, her green eyes blazing. "I said, get lost!" She snapped angrily.

The guy frowned, his eyes hardening. He grabbed her again, more roughly this time. If Hane had stripped away her illusion, the moron would have been grabbing her scruff. Her eyes narrowed dangerously.

"Let. Go. Of. Me." She snarled.

The man smirked. "Not a chance."

In the next moment, Hane brought her free arm up and punched him in the face, twisting away from his grasp as she did so. Without a moments hesitation, she kicked right where it hurt and stepped backwards, watching in disgust as he crumpled to the floor, howling in agony. She let out a 'tch' sound, ignoring the humans who stared with wide eyes. On closer inspection, they would see that, even though Hane had apparently punched the man, claw marks raked down his cheek, bleeding lightly.

"Stupid humans." She muttered, too low for them to hear.

And then she simply walked away, her nose in the air in the way that only a wolf could pull off.

_**Ruins of Freeze City**_

Hane peered over the edge of the building, her sharp eyes warily seeking out the dark form of the tree the humans had gathered at earlier. It was evening again, but this time, the moon shone full and bright above her, distorted through the glass panes of the dome. Hane could already feel strength seeping into her bones, making her eyesight keener, her sense of smell sharper and her movements quicker.

She had been lucky, since it would be easier to evade capture if one of the humans spotted her with the help of the moon's strength at her side. She could see a few of them now, milling around the base of the tree, their faces somber. She wondered briefly what had made them so sad and quiet; humans usually made such a ruckus. Unable to spot any wolves among them, she felt a bitter disappointment, but she pushed it away. She couldn't give up, not just yet.

Carefully keeping an eye on the men, she crept to a catwalk high up above the other buildings. Hane normally wasn't squeamish about heights, but looking down, she realized with a sickening feeling that even a wolf would be able to survive if they fell from this perch. Carefully placing each foot in front of her, she glanced down at the tree.

Still no sign of any wolves. But... Sniffing the air, Hane recognized one of the scents from earlier, but much fresher, and definitely wolf and male. She stared down again, her green eyes relentlessly searching. Where was he?

"Tsume, you're back!" At the surprised voice from below, Hane almost fell, her arms wobbling precariously for a moment. With a sigh of relief, she managed to right herself, and carefully sat down on the catwalk.

_Tsume..._? She thought to herself distractedly.

Down below, she saw the men part as someone walked over. She felt a start of realization as the illusion holding his mask in place slipped away before her eyes, revealing the dark grey wolf behind it. She jerked backwards so swiftly, she nearly slipped off the catwalk again. Once she had recovered, she peered over the edge again. Blinking, the illusion was back. Hane stared curiously at the wolf, taking in the darkly tanned skin, silver hair and golden eyes, realizing that it was the person she had seen earlier. Suppressing a smirk, she couldn't help let loose a small, "Well, looks like someone's obsessed with leather..."

Despite her words being as quiet as she could make them, the wolf's- Tsume, she remembered- head snapped upwards suddenly. Hane didn't move as his gaze landed upon her. He didn't start, but she could have sworn she saw a flicker of shock flash in his golden eyes as he realized what she was.

Unable to do anything else, she gave him a sheepish smile and waggled her fingers in a wave. But his eyes darkened, his lips turning down in a scowl as he looked away from her.

"Tsume? What happened to Gehl?" One of the men piped up. "We've been hearing different stories all night..."

"Gehl's dead." Tsume said shortly. There were a few gasps of surprise, followed by murmurs as the group spoke to each other in hushed tones.

Hane frowned. _Gehl? Who's Gehl?_

Tsume raised his voice so he could be heard over the others. "We meet back here tomorrow at noon."

The men hesitated for a moment, their uncertainty about what they had just heard making them linger, but they slowly dispersed, one by one. Once the coast was clear, Hane leaped down, landing gracefully on two feet, but Tsume had already turned his back and was walking away.

"Hey!" she yelled, running so she could catch up with him. "Hey, you!"

"What do you want?" Tsume growled unpleasantly, keeping his eyes fixed ahead.

Hane paused for a moment. What was it that she wanted? To have company? To not be alone?

"I caught the scent of lunar flowers here. I was hoping another wolf would be able to help me out." The gray wolf didn't say anything as he continued to walk.

"I also smelled another wolf around here. Could you tell me where they went? And the name's Hane, by the way." She added, trying to mask her uneasiness.

Tsume let out a sigh of annoyance. "Don't know, don't care. Now get lost."

"You sure are fussy, for a male." Hane remarked. "And how could you not care whether or not one of our own is injured? Dying, even?"

"He seemed fine and dandy, and even if he wasn't, I still wouldn't give a damn." He growled back.

Hane felt her lips pull back in a snarl of her own. "Don't you care what happens to him? We're a dying breed; we should be looking out for each other!"

"I only look out for myself." He replied coldly.

Hane let out a 'tch' of aggravation. "You're a disgrace to our species."

Tsume turned towards her, letting his illusion fade away as he leapt at her, snarling. Hane knew that he was just trying to make her go away, but it hurt all the same. She spat back at him before turning around and racing away, her mind a confused whirl of thoughts.

Is this what wolves were like now? Is this how she would end up if she hung around humans long enough? How could a wolf live like that? How could they ever be happy again?

She disappeared into the shadows, trying to leave behind her confusion and dismay as all she had believed in crumbled around her.

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**Review? Please? Pretty, pretty please?**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi guys! The next chapter, or episode if you will. Hane meets Toboe for the first time! **

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_**Freeze City**_

Hane shuffled through the streets, her hands shoved into her pockets and a scowl on her face. After the mishap with Tsume, the she-wolf had been trying to track down the other wolf she had scented. She had managed to follow it to near the center of the city, where she had found traces of the same blood, along with strands of white fur. After that, the scent had become so muddled with the stench of humans and machinery that she was barely able to track it to a large building. There, she had sworn she could smell lunar flowers as well, but had pushed it away. She must have been hallucinating, and anyway, she had bigger priorities.

The scent of the white wolf mingled with another wolf's at the entrance. Startled, Hane tried to continue to track them, but she gave up after it ended in the sewers. She may have been a wolf with an exceptional sense of smell, but the stink of sewers masked the scent too well.

So, here she was again, with no leads. Hane sighed. Maybe she was just unlucky. She continued to wander without aim, only pausing to snatch a hamburger from a street vendor, not feeling any guilt as she did so. She took to the back streets, eager to escape the prying eyes of humans who were looking to see if they could pickpocket something from her.

Hane turned round the corner, still musing about what she should do, and stopped dead. There, in front of her... _A wolf_. Or rather, a pup. The kid was scrawny, with reddish-brown fur and what appeared to be metal bracelets jangling around his front right paw- but what was shocking was the he wasn't disguising himself. And he was in front of a human.

Feeling a surge of fear, Hane backed up slowly until she was back around the corner, breathing hard. Peeking around, she saw black crows cawing to each other in disgust as they talked about how the pup should know better than to steal food from them as the girl handed the wolf a sausage. At first, the pup wouldn't eat, wary enough to suspect that it might not be good for him.

"Don't be afraid," The girl encouraged, giving him a gentle smile. "They're not poisoned or anything."

To demonstrate that she was telling the truth, she ate a bit of one of the sausage links before showing it to the pup again. "See, it's fine!"

Despite her original misgivings, Hane watched in approval as the wolf finally ate the sausage. It seemed like there were some good humans in this godforsaken world after all.

"Where'd you come from, little fella?" The girl mused. "If you wander around here too long, the dog-catchers will get you for sure!"

At her words, the pup let out a whine and licked her hand. Surprised, the girl stroked him gently as he nuzzled her fingers. "You sure are warm, aren't you, boy."

Hane grimaced. She was all for kindness, but she knew that it wasn't a good idea to mess with humans if you didn't know what you were doing. _Come on, now._ She prayed silently. _Leave her alone, walk away..._

"Leara!" A gruff voice called out. By the girl's startled movement, Hane guessed that the man was her father.

"Bye, now!" Leara said, stroking the youngster once more before turning and walking away. When the wolf made a move to follow her, she said in a firm tone, "No, stay! Sorry, boy, but even if you followed me home I couldn't keep you!"

Looking a little sad, the pup sat back on his haunches before tilting his head slightly. Hane let out a breath she didn't know she was holding. Well, at least the kid wasn't completely stupid.

"Well that's funny, it's almost as if you can understand me..." Leara said, surprised.

Hane bit back her grin. _If only you knew..._ She thought to herself.

"I'm sorry," The little girl said sadly before turning and racing back to her father. Once the truck had driven away, Hane stepped out from the shadows.

"You'll want to be careful, kid." She said airily. "It's not smart to walk around without disguising yourself."

The wolf snapped around, his hackles raised and his ears flat against his head in surprise and fear.

"Hey, hey! It's all good. The name's Hane." The she-wolf said cheerfully.

"Y-You're a wolf, like me!" The pup stammered out.

"Mhm. Trust me though, I was as clueless about there being others in the city as you were. What's your name?"

"Toboe..." The kid said, relaxing.

"Nice to meet you. Now, what are you doing running around looking like that?" Hane said, a hint of disapproval slipping into her voice.

Toboe tilted his head in confusion. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, you're walking around as a wolf, in plain daylight. Didn't your mother teach you it's not safe?"

Toboe's ears and tail drooped. "Um, I don't have a mother. I've lived with a human my whole life."

Hane felt her heart tighten in pity. Poor pup. "Well, where's your owner?"

"She's..." Unable to finish his sentence, Toboe sat back down again.

"Oh. Oh..." That would explain why the kid had been rooting around in a garbage dump. If there was no one to feed him or teach him how to hunt, he must have been struggling. "How long have you been on your own?"

"A few weeks." Toboe replied, the paw with the bracelets tracing patterns into the dust.

"Ah. Do you know how to pass off as a human?" Hane asked next. If he didn't know, she could always teach him before moving on.

"Yeah." In the next moment, a human boy of about fourteen, maybe a bit older, with amber eyes and the same rusty brown hair as the pup's fur stood in front of her. The bracelets were still around his wrist.

"Not bad." Hane said. "But you might want to steer clear of humans, kiddo. They're not all as nice as that Leara girl."

"You saw that?" To Hane's inner delight, a blush spread across Toboe's face.

"Mhm. But you've got to remember she's human." Hane replied carefully.

"I know that." Toboe scoffed.

"I'm just saying, you should be careful." The she-wolf warned.

Toboe shrugged at her response. "It's fine."

Hane sighed. It was obvious she wouldn't be able to convince the cub that it was a bad idea to mess around with humans. Turning around, she lifted a partially gloved hand in farewell. "See ya, kiddo."

"Wait, where are you going? You're just going to leave me here?!" Toboe called out, a sudden panic in his voice.

"If I see you around, I'll say hello. And if you meet any other wolves, keep me posted. Bye, Toboe." She said cheerfully.

"Uh... Bye?"

Hane didn't look back as she walked away, but inwardly, she resolved to keep an eye on the kid. Just... Check in on him every once in awhile. She didn't want him to do something stupid and get hurt.

_**Freeze City**_

Hane looked upwards at the 'sky' above her. She knew that the sunlight that the dome created was completely artificial, but that didn't mean the humans hadn't done a good job. The sun was just beginning to set, bathing the city in an orange glow. It had only been a day since she had met Toboe, but the she-wolf was feeling restless, and wondering if he was okay.

She had still been unable to track down the other two wolves she had scented, and had steered well clear of Tsume, although she had spotted him from afar every once in awhile. She had recently smelled him around here though, near the park, and despite everything, Hane knew she had to stick around if she wanted to check to see if Toboe was alright.

She was on one of the rooftops, her eyes searching for Toboe's slight form. She knew the key was to let her eyes wander, to pick up movement randomly instead of focusing on one area and risk missing something. She got distracted as a hawk flew up into the sky, wings beating strongly.

_Someone's pet?_ She thought curiously. It was unusual to see birds of prey in domed cities.

As Hane watched, the bird suddenly dove, obviously having seen some prey. She thought about when she used to actually catch her own food instead of steal it. Of course, it was mostly because bison didn't stampede around Freeze City, but still.

She started as she heard a long, drawn-out howl come from the park place. She stood, feeling a river of ice crawl through her veins.

_Toboe?!_ She thought wildly before leaping off the building and running in the direction she had heard the howl come from.

Ignoring the strange looks she got from the humans she raced past, she shouted out loudly, "Toboe?! Toboe!" She knew that she was overreacting, that she shouldn't care if the kid was in trouble or not, but her maternal instincts were kicking in, and there was nothing anyone could do to stop her.

Hane skidded to a halt in front of the forest, her greenish yellow eyes widening in disbelief. There was Toboe, with the girl from before -Leara-, howling his head off! She looked shell-shocked, staring at him with wide eyes as she cradled a dead bird in her arms. With a start, Hane realized it was the hawk from before. She felt her heart sink into her feet.

_Dammit kiddo, what did you do?_ She thought, tensing so that she could grab him and drag him away. But before she could move, a streak of black, tan and white came out of nowhere, grabbing Toboe by the scruff of his neck and disappearing almost as quickly.

Hane blinked once in shock. _Tsume? Does he know Toboe?_

Shaking herself once to snap herself out of it, she gave chase. She followed their scent all the way back to the tree where she had first met the angry gray wolf. She lingered underneath the shade of the tree, her hands wringing nervously. She wanted to check to see if Toboe was alright, but she also knew that the likelihood of Tsume trying to bite her head off was very high as well.

She hesitated in indecision for a few more moments, just as a bright, white light lit up the sky. She flinched, throwing her arm in front of her face as her sensitive eyes blinked shut. But that wasn't the worse part. A high-pitched scream echoed in her ears, a noise full of despair and agony and pain.

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**Revieeeew... Pleeeeeaaase?**


	3. Chapter 3

**Since this episode ended up being really long, I decided to cut it into two parts; here's the first!**

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_**Ruins of Freeze City**_

Hane crumpled to the stone floor beneath her, her hands clamped over her ears as she squeezed her eyes shut. She could dimly hear someone screaming- _Toboe?_- but it was drowned out by the mournful sounds of whoever was crying out. Unable to contain herself anymore, she let out a high-pitched shriek of agony, unable to stop as the wailing continued. She could feel tears dripping down her face as she continued to scream, incapable of bearing such an awful sound.

But, just as abruptly as it began, the screams stopped. Hane stilled, her breaths coming out in shuddering gasps as she tried to calm herself, her body trembling from head to tail.

_What _was_ that?_ She thought. _What horrible thing could've happened to someone to make them... To make them scream like that?_

She stood, leaning against the tree for support as she caught her breath. Toboe. She thought suddenly, feeling her heart contract with sudden fear for the pup. Her ears still ringing slightly, she could barely maneuver her way around, unused to the lack of what was one of her strongest senses, but thankfully, she could pick up Toboe and Tsume's scent coming from above.

Hane leapt, landing precariously on the windowsill. "Heya, boys!" She said, pasting a fake smile on her face as she hopped inside.

Tsume turned towards her, a snarl on his face, but Toboe let out a happy yelp and rushed over. "Hane!"

"What the hell are you even doing here?" Tsume snapped at the same time.

"Hey, kiddo. You okay?" She said kindly, ignoring Tsume.

The smile on Toboe's face wavered, and for a moment, he looked like he was going to cry. "Did you hear it? I wasn't the only one... To hear that sad, sad voice." He whispered.

Hane shook her head grimly. "No, I heard it too." Turning towards Tsume, she said snarkily, "And what about you, dumbass? Did you hear it too?"

"It was probably some old machine breaking down." He growled. "What the hell are you doing here, anyway? I'd have thought you'd be chasing down that wolf you asked me about."

Hane bristled. "I was looking out for the kid, if you must know." She snapped back angrily. "I saw what happened earlier... With the girl. I told you to be careful, kiddo."

Toboe lowered his eyes. "I just... I wanted to see her again. And when I saw the bird, I thought..."

Hane sighed. "Maybe it was for the best."

Tsume snorted. "Yeah. He should've gotten the hint earlier."

Toboe flinched, his amber eyes hurt. Hane placed a hand on his shoulder before shooting a glare over at Tsume.

"Look, as much as I love hanging out with you, we need to go." She said. "Come on, Toboe."

"Wait!" The pup grabbed her sleeve, looking up at her with pleading eyes. "Maybe... Maybe we could just stay the night. I mean, if that's alright with you, Tsume."

The gray wolf stared out the window, arms crossed over his chest. "I don't give a damn about what you do. But this is my turf; I won't let you stay here long."

"Thanks, Tsume!" Toboe looked so relieved, it was as if Tsume had offered him blankets and cookies instead of warning them that he would kick them out soon enough.

Hane shot the kid a questioning look, but turned towards Tsume. "... Thanks." She said gruffly.

Tsume didn't react. Hane scowled. _Would it kill the guy to be polite?_ She sat down on the floor, losing the illusion and heaving a faint sigh of relief as she felt four paws and a tail. She beckoned Toboe over before curling up on the floor, her tail twitching slightly. The pup padded over happily and sat down with her, burying his muzzle in her fur.

_"So how d'you meet tall dark and grumpy anyhow?"_ Hane asked curiously.

_"He saved my life. This old man, with a big black dog... He knew what we were. I would've been shot dead, if Tsume hadn't helped me out."_ Toboe said, his tail wagging happily.

_"Hmph. Who knew he had it in him."_ Hane said, an edge of mockery in her voice as she glanced at Tsume.

Tsume's scowl deepened, but he continued to stare outside moodily. Hane paused for a moment, feeling slightly guilty. Maybe she had been just a little too hard on him... But to be fair, he had acted like an ass earlier.

_"So, how long have you been hanging out around here, kiddo?"_ Hane asked curiously.

Toboe's ears drooped slightly as he laid his muzzle on his paws. _"With Tsume, you mean? Not long."_

_"What about you?"_ Toboe said, snapping the she-wolf out of her thoughts.

_"What?"_

_"Why did you come here? And meet Tsume? Do you have a family?"_ He said patiently.

Hane paused for a moment, feeling her heart tighten in her chest. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Tsume look at the two of them for the first time since he had stopped talking. She averted her eyes, staring down at the floor.

_"I-uh..." Do you have a family? "I lost my pack... Some time ago. I've been living at Freeze City for about two years now, and I met this guy two days ago."_ Her quiet voice turned sharp as she mentioned meeting Tsume, still staring unwaveringly at the floor.

_"What do you mean, you lost your pack?"_ Toboe asked, confused.

Hane laid her muzzle on her paws. _"It's late, kiddo. You should get some rest."_

She could still feel curiosity seeping off the pup, but he was kind enough to not say anything as he closed his eyes. It wasn't long before he was snoring softly.

Hane sighed softly, before letting her eyes close as well, feeling Tsume's stare on her fur like a burning brand. She could almost feel how he wanted to ask what Toboe had said, but was either too pissed off at her, or maybe didn't care enough; she didn't know. She fell asleep soon after, too tired to try and think anymore.

_**Ruins of Freeze City; The next morning**_

Hane stirred slightly, her eyes blinking open sleepily as she woke. She could feel Toboe's muzzle on her back as he slept, his stomach rising and falling gently with each breath. Carefully, she stood, making sure to disturb the pup as little as possible.

Sighing, she let her illusion take hold once again before glancing around curiously for Tsume.

_Where's the moron gotten to this time?_ She thought grumpily, walking towards the window. Peering outside, she sniffed deeply. She could scent Tsume, overlapping the reek of the humans he 'worked' with. She sighed, leaning against the wall. His scent was fresh, so he hadn't left long ago, and judging by the wind, he had been headed towards the center of the city.

Hane frowned slightly, but shook her feelings of uneasiness aside. It wasn't any of her business what he did. Besides, it was probably something shady anyway. She sat down on the windowsill, one of her legs dangling on the outside as she leaned her head backwards.

Closing her eyes, she breathed in deeply. Strangely enough, Tsume's scent was kind of... Nice, in a weird way. It was, of course, wolfy, but there was a tinge of some sort of spicy smell to it that reminded Hane of the exotic powders humans sold to make their food taste better. And something else... She wasn't sure what it was, but she would be lying if she said it wasn't pleasant.

But... Something was wrong. Something was... Missing, that made the whole city smell just a little more dirty and filthy. _Where's the scent of lunar flowers gone?_

"What are you doing?" A mildly curious voice said from behind her, with an edge of sarcasm.

Hane sighed regretfully before opening her eyes. "You know, I was actually enjoying my day until you showed up."

Tsume eyed her, before tossing a brown paper bag towards her. She caught it easily, and opened it to find a hamburger.

Raising an eyebrow, she said mockingly, "Wow. I guess you do care."

Tsume snorted, but didn't say anything else. Walking over to Toboe, he prodded him with his foot. "Get up, kid." He said emotionlessly, dropping another paper bag on his chest.

Toboe yawned and stretched, his nose twitching as he smelled the burger. "Food?" He mumbled, his eyes opening.

Hane grinned at him. "Yep. Eat up, kiddo."

She took a bite of the hamburger. It wasn't exactly a bison, but compared to some of the stuff humans cooked, it was pretty good.

"So, what are you gonna do now, Tsume?" Toboe asked curiously, looking up from his burger. "Do you have somewhere to go?"

Hane looked at the gray wolf expectantly.

"Who knows." He said, shrugging slightly before biting into his food.

Toboe was silent for a moment as he glanced downwards, his eyes turning sad. "I wonder if I'll ever see Leara again... Hey, do you think it would be okay if I went to visit her?!"

Hane grimaced. "Toboe, no offense, but I don't think that would be the best idea... I mean, after what happened..."

Tsume scoffed. "You saw that look on her face, didn't you?" He said cruelly.

"She was just, uh, a little surprised, that's all!" Toboe defended himself, looking down at his hamburger again.

"You can't be serious!" Tsume said, his voice irritated and sardonically amused at the same time. "She was pissing in her pants!"

"She was not!" Toboe snapped back, losing his temper for the first time since Hane had met him.

"That girl was reeking of it." Tsume said, a smirk on his face.

Hane felt a snarl come onto her face. This idiot was really starting to piss her off.

"Why do you have to _lie_ about everything?" Toboe said, his amber gaze fixed on Tsume. "You heard that sound too, didn't you? You can't say you didn't, because Hane heard it too! And it must have made you feel sad! So stop lying, and just be honest with yourself!"

Hane looked at the pup, impressed. She didn't know the kid had it in him. Tsume, however, scowled. "Fine, whatever. If you wanna go, then go! It's not like I care what happens to you."

"Sounds good to me!" Hane said, getting up. "Regret meeting ya, Tsume. See you around!" _Hopefully not..._ She thought inwardly.

Glancing around, she noticed Toboe was still sitting down. "So, why did you save me, then?" Toboe asked, his tone fierce. "If you really don't care, then you should've just left me, or pretended not to recognize me! I mean, we're not your friends or anything..."

"Toboe," Hane said, her voice hushed. "Come on, let's go."

"You're right." Toboe and Hane both looked at Tsume, identical looks of astonishment on their faces. "You're not my friends."

Toboe scowled. "Yeah, I forgot, you're only friends with humans. It's easier that way, isn't it? 'Cuz no human is ever gonna be as strong as you. They'll do whatever you tell them to!"

"You don't know what you're talking about!" Tsume said savagely. "You don't know what it takes t survive in this city, how dangerous it is! Nothing!"

"Actually, I do." Hane said coldly, stepping forwards. "And I, personally, don't need to rely on humans for help. And somehow, I'm not a total bastard."

Tsume growled, deep in his throat. "Go on, then. Let's see how well you do on your own. Beat it!" With his last words, he threw the remainders of his hamburger at Toboe.

He didn't seem to care, but Hane snarled anyway, her maternal instincts taking over. "Watch it!"

"You should get out of here too!" Tsume shot back, golden eyes blazing with fury. "Before I kick your ass into tomorrow!"

"Really?! I'd like to see you try, twinkle-toes!" Hane spat.

"Hane!" Toboe was tugging insistently on her sleeve. "Please, can we just go?"

Hane glanced at Tsume, and sighed. "Whatever." Opening the door, she pushed Toboe ahead of her. But before she exited, she turned towards Tsume.

"How can you live like this?" She demanded, waving her hand at the wrecked room. "Working with humans, sleeping in this dump, being a total asshole to everyone you meet, even your own kind! What kind of life is that?! How can you stand being so... So..." She fumbled for the right word. "...Alone?" She finished lamely.

Tsume stared at her for a second, before putting his hands up. "Hey, I'm sorry."

Hane heard Toboe's gasp of surprise, but refused to look away.

"I'm sorry I ever got mixed up with a bunch of morons like you two." He finished, sitting on the sill and putting his hands behind his head.

Hane felt slightly disappointed, but she wasn't surprised. "Let's go," She sighed to Toboe before stepping outside the room. She paused for a moment, glancing back at Tsume, before slamming the door, her strength making it tremble and cracks appear in the wall as it closed. Following Toboe, she only just managed to hear Tsume's muttered words, "I'm sick of friends. Who needs 'em?"

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**I love reviews... Y'know... Just to tell you guys ;)**


	4. Chapter 4

**Part 2! Where all the excitement begins...**

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_**Freeze City**_

Hane walked behind Toboe, her hands shoved into her pockets. The pup had been stalking ahead angrily for some time now, and she had decided that it would just be best to let him cool off. Sometime along the way, Toboe had stopped appearing as a human, but Hane was mindful enough to remain cloaked in her illusion.

The two wolves had been wandering randomly around town for a while, but Hane noticed that they seemed to be headed towards the dumpsters she had met him enough, she was soon able to recognize the path they were taking. "Why are we going back there? As much as I hate to admit it, Tsume was right. It wouldn't be smart to go see Leara again." She said, falling into step beside him.

Toboe sighed angrily. "I know, I just... If I was alone, I'd be able to do just fine!"

"I'm sure, kiddo." Hane said dryly. "But you should know, that he has a point, even if he's a total jerk. No wolf should be on their own. It just isn't right, y'know? We live in packs."

Toboe shrugged, scuffing the ground with his foot. "Then why are you on your own? You said you had a pack, didn't you?"

Hane glanced downwards. "It's... It's complicated, kiddo."

"How?" Toboe said insistently.

Hane sighed._ Pups. They're all the same._ "What I mean is-" She stopped talking, her head snapping around as a growl arose in her throat.

The manhole cover nearby wobbled, before being pushed upwards. Hane took a protective stance in front of Toboe.

"Uh oh, must have taken a wrong turn!" The voice came from a teen, maybe a little younger than Hane, with ruffled golden brown hair that stuck up in all directions and what seemed to be some sort of dog collar around his neck. He turned, and Hane gaped as she saw the chubby wolf beneath the illusion. "Hey, it's more of our own!"

All of a sudden, he rose, pushed upwards by someone beneath him. "Move it, would ya?" A voice said irritably.

"It's you two! I've been scenting you guys around the place!" Hane gasped, recognizing the scents as a boy about the same age as the other one appeared, with dark, slightly wavy black hair that brushed his shoulders and icy blue eyes. Just as quickly, Hane stripped away the illusion, and saw the white wolf for who he really was.

"That's the last time I trust your nose!" The black-haired one snapped at the other, ignoring Hane's comment.

"Well anyone's nose would go numb after a night in that stinkhole!" The brown one retorted. "And anyway, we managed to find two other wolves... And one of which is a babe!"

Hane raised an eyebrow, but couldn't help the small quirk of her mouth. Toboe was still staring, stock still. "Y-You guys?! No way! Y-You're-"

The black-haired one looked past them, his eyes narrowing. Hane and Toboe both turned simultaneously, only to see Leara standing there, looking absolutely terrified.

"Leara!" Toboe gasped. The girl started trembling violently at the sound of his voice, clutching her bag of groceries tightly.

"Toboe!" Hane said warningly, her voice low, but Toboe ignored her.

"Don't be scared! I won't do anything. I just... Wanted to see you again. I'm so sorry... About your bird..." He whimpered, his gaze dropping.

"Daddy... Daddy!_ Daddy!_" Leara shrieked, terrified. "Come quick, it's the wolf! The wolf is here!"

Hane stared in disbelief, hearing a man's voice shout out in response. "Leara! Where are you!" Her sharp eyesight picked out a man in a trenchcoat, brandishing a rifle as he tried to pull his big black dog along. With a shout, he released the leash, and the dog raced away.

"Come on!" Hane snapped, grabbing Toboe by the scruff. "We have to get out of here!"

"Follow us!" The brown-haired boy said urgently before ducking behind a corner. At his heels, Hane followed him and the black-haired boy into one of the small tunnels that led into the sewers.

"Daddy! Over here!" Leara continued to scream, her voice shaking.

"Toboe!" Hane exclaimed, glancing behind her to see the wolf still hadn't followed them in. She could hear the sound of running footsteps as Leara rounded the corner, and stopped dead.

"Why, Leara? Why did you scream?" Toboe said, upset.

"No, stay away!" Leara whimpered, backing up. "Th-There's something wrong with you! Y-You're not normal; how can anyone ever trust you?!"

"Toboe!" Hane hissed. _What the hell is he doing?!_

"Leara, please!" Toboe pleaded. "I only showed you so that you could trust me!"

"No, don't come any closer!" Leara yelped.

"Why?! Didn't you come here to catch me!" Toboe reached forward and prodded her, causing the girl to shriek and fall backwards.

Decidingly having had enough, Hane poked her head outside. "Get in, now!" She snarled, showing her teeth.

Toboe hesitated a moment, but complied.

Hane could hear the muffled sounds as Leara's father found her behind them, but ignored and kept staring ahead. There was silence until they made it to the sewers, and everyone relaxed.

"I told you, I hate smelly places!" The brown-haired kid complained.

They reached the main tunnel, everyone panting slightly from their run.

"Hey runt, what's eating you?" He asked, glancing backwards at Toboe.

"I'm not a runt!" Toboe said indignantly. "My name's Toboe."

"And I'm Hane." The she-wolf butted in.

"Well, that's cool. I'm Hige, and this here's Kiba!" The boy said cheerfully.

"I've been scenting you all over Freeze City, trying to track you down." Hane said, falling into step besides Hige.

"Oh, sorry about that!" Hige grinned. "If we had known there was a pretty she-wolf after us, trust me, we would have stopped. But we didn't want to get caught."

Hane smiled back. It was nice to hang out with someone who actually grinned for a change.

"So where are we headed?" Toboe piped up.

"Where'd you think? To the exit, of course!" Hige scoffed.

"The exit?" Toboe said, confused.

"We're leaving town." The black-haired one- Kiba- said.

"You're leaving town?!" Toboe said in disbelief. "But, where else are you gonna go?"

"To Paradise." Kiba said, looking ahead.

"Paradise..." Toboe said wonderingly.

"Hmm. Sounds interesting." Hane said, trying to ignore the flutter of excitement in her chest. Sure, this guy sounded nuts, but a chance to leave this dump? And with other wolves?! It was a dream come true!

"You can tag along if you want!" Hige said, sounding utterly pleased.

Hane glanced at Kiba. "Sure, if your friend's okay with it."

Kiba shrugged in response, which, judging by how he had acted since she had met him, seemed to qualify as a yes. She felt the thrill in her chest again. She was leaving Freeze City!

She was distracted by Toboe's voice, and noticed he had fallen behind.

"Hey, guys..." The pup said hesitantly, and Hane immediately understood what he wanted to say. "Do you know Tsume?"

"Toboe..." Hane groaned.

Hige and Kiba shot her a questioning look. "Tsume?" Kiba said curiously.

"Nah, never heard of him!" Hige said.

"Is he the one with the scar on his chest?" Kiba asked.

"Yeah! That's Tsume alright!" Toboe said, brightening up.

"Okay, what about him?" Kiba asked.

"He's one of us, so I thought he might wanna leave too." Toboe said, his energy leaving him immediately.

"Good riddance, in my opinion!" Hane snorted.

"Well, if the runt likes him, he mustn't be all that bad." Hige said fairly. "And I don't know him; where is he, hiding out someplace?"

Hane sighed. If she was lucky, Tsume would tell them all to get lost if they ended up finding him, and he wouldn't end up bothering her anymore.

"I dunno, we... Got split up." Toboe said sadly.

"More like he told us to get lost. The guy's a total jerk, I'm telling you!" Hane said.

"That's not true!" Toboe replied. "He just pretends he doesn't care, but he does! I'm sure of it..."

Hige shrugged his shoulders. "Well, sorry pal, but it's too late to go back for him now."

"And anyway, it's not as if he's your friend, is he." Hane said, trying to keep the irritation out of her voice.

"No, he's not my friend..." Toboe said, his voice trailing off.

"So? Ditch him already!" Hige said, turning around.

"I'm sorry, kiddo, but Hige's offering some good advice. Even if we did manage to meet up with Tsume again, he'd probably just yell at you." Hane said, following Hige as he walked away.

Toboe hesitated for a moment, his eyes flickering unsurely from Hane to Hige.

"Hey Kiba, you coming?" Hige said, noticing that his friend was dropping behind.

"We're going this way." Kiba replied simply, gazing upwards, at the foot of a ladder that led back up to the surface.

"Are you crazy? That crazy old guy is still probably looking for us! And judging by our luck, he'll find us, and shoot us!" Hige exclaimed.

But Kiba was already climbing, and soon disappeared as he crawled out.

"Good grief." Hige sighed, before following him. "Hey, Kiba, wait up!"

"You next, Toboe." Hane gestured towards the ladder.

The pup glanced at her once before followed suit and climbing up. Hane paused for a moment before following, her greenish yellow eyes narrowing. Kneeling down, she inspected the splatters of blood on the ground that Toboe and Hige hadn't seen. She took a deep sniff, trying not to gag at the disgusting stench of the sewers. She wasn't all that surprised to smell Tsume's scent.

_What happened to him?_ She wondered curiously._ It hasn't been that long since Toboe and I left..._

"Hey, you coming?" Toboe called out from above, sticking his head through the hole.

"Yeah... Yeah, I'm coming." Hane said distantly before scrambling up the ladder.

**_Freeze City; Half an hour later_**

"Kiba, where are we going?" Hige complained, jogging so he could catch up with the white wolf.

"I think I know..." Hane mused.

Kiba turned around and stared at her, making her shrug and half-smile. "I'm surprised Hige didn't scent it; but I guess his nose is still clogged up from the sewers."

"Then, where?" Toboe panted.

Hane sighed. "I'd rather not tell you. You would probably consider it a 'surprise'."

"No one gets left behind." Kiba said.

Hane shrugged. "I don't really care, either way. Just as long as we get out of here."

Hige stopped dead. "Look out!" He hissed suddenly.

Without a second thought, Hane ducked into an alleyway, dragging Toboe along with her.

"Hey, what's going o-" Toboe's voice was muffled as Hane covered his mouth with her hand.

"Hush!" She hissed angrily.

There was the sound of footsteps, and Hane watched carefully from the shadows as some armed guards passed by, their armor clanking.

"Do you think we'll finally catch him this time?" One of them said dubiously. "I mean, he's always managed to get away before-"

"But this time, we've got insider information. This bastard's going down!" Another said triumphantly.

Hane tensed, her teeth gritting as they passed. It was only once she couldn't hear the sound of footsteps that she released Toboe.

"Who do you think they were talking about?" He asked, his eyes wide.

"Dunno." Hige said, emerging from behind some dumpsters as Kiba leapt down from his perch in a window.

Hane glanced at Kiba. "Are we almost there?" She said pointedly.

"Yeah. But we'll have to be careful; there are guards everywhere." He replied.

Hige glanced between them and sighed. "Why does no one ever tell me what's going on?" He complained.

"You said it." Toboe grumbled.

"We're almost there." Hane reassured. "We just need to do something first."

None of them spoke anymore, just following Kiba. They had to take several detours to avoid being seen by the guards, but they finally found a tunnel that led to the building they were aiming towards. They walked up the flight of stairs silently, save the occasional complaint from Hige and Toboe, keeping a wary eye when they passed any windows.

Finally, they reached the top. Kiba opened the door, and was the first to enter. Hige followed him, nose wrinkling in disgust.

"What a crap heap, why the hell did you bring us here?" He said.

Hane followed him in, immediately spotting Tsume standing in the center of the room like a cornered animal. She saw blood drip down his arm from a wound, and felt the briefest flash of concern.

"Tsume!" Toboe exclaimed, shouldering past Hane.

"You?!" Tsume snarled in disbelief, straightening slightly from his defensive posture.

"What? Hey, is this him?" Hige said, confused.

"Yeah, it's him alright." Hane sighed.

"I could smell the blood from your wound." Kiba said as means of explanation.

"What?" Tsume said, his eyes darting between them.

"I smelled it all the way here from town." Kiba replied.

"And you're gonna nurse me back to health?" He snapped. "Well I don't need your help!"

"You made that clear enough earlier, trust me." Hane said frostily.

Tsume let out short, barking laugh. "Then why are you here?"

"Wasn't my idea. I'm just tagging along with these guys for the time being." Hane replied.

"Too incapable of dealing on your own?" Tsume taunted.

Hane knew he was just trying to goad her, but she bared her teeth in a snarl. "I know how to live on my own. But you obviously can't manage it, since it appears your buddies have abandoned you and you're wounded."

"Hane, don't." Toboe pleaded. The she-wolf glanced at him once, and sighed as she relented.

"Whatever." She said moodily, turning her gaze away from Tsume for a moment.

"Thanks." Toboe said gratefully before turning towards Tsume. "Tsume, look I... We're leaving the city. I-I really think you should come with us."

"His opinion, not mine!" Hane interrupted.

"And just where is this merry band of yours going?" Tsume growled.

"To Paradise." Kiba stepped forward again.

Hane saw a flicker of disbelief flash through Tsume's eyes before he let out a chuckle. "You're kidding me. You two are going with him because you believe in that crap?"

"It's better than living the rest of our lives in this dump." Hane pointed out irritably.

"She's right... If we stay here, we'll have to spend the rest of our lives in hiding, or worse." Toboe said, looking down at his feet. "We just can't live with the humans anymore and survive..."

There was a moment of silence, Tsume still staring at them with a look of mixed disbelief and irritation on his face.

"Ah, sorry to interrupt," Hige said, looking carefully from the edge of the window. "But a nasty stink is headed this way!"

"We're surrounded." Tsume said, his voice sharp with anger.

"Let me ask you; Why did you guys come to this city?" Kiba asked, staring at each of them in turn. Hane looked away, as did everyone else. "It was because of the flower scent, wasn't it? Well it's gone now. There's no reason to stay."

"The flower has nothing to do with it." Tsume said, staring out the window. "I'm here because I belong."

"I can see that," Kiba said coolly. "This city is a dump."

Hane glanced at the white wolf with new respect in her eyes. She had never thought anyone could diss Tsume like that, and without losing his temper. But underneath his frigidity, Hane could sense a deep passion; and eagerness to get away. He wouldn't force Tsume to come if he didn't want to. He probably wouldn't even try to persuade him. But that didn't mean he wanted the gray wolf to be left behind.

At Kiba's words, Tsume stiffened and settled his piercing golden stare on him. "I still have a score to settle with you," He said, taking a few steps forward.

"We don't have time for this!" Hige snapped.

"As much as I would love to see Tsume's ass handed to him, Hige's right." Hane also intoned, but Tsume and Kiba ignored the both of them.

"The last time we met, you said something about how your pride wouldn't allow you to pass as a human." Tsume said. "You look pretty human now, where'd your pride go?"

"Nowhere." Kiba replied, ignoring his demeaning tone. "Nothing has changed."

"Do you have the slightest idea of what leaving the city would mean?" Tsume asked, his gaze still locked onto Kiba.

"Yeah."

"You'll just _die_." Tsume said.

"Possibly. Everyone's gonna die, it's a natural part of life." Kiba answered, his stare never wavering. "But if life has no purpose, you're dead already."

No one spoke for a moment, but the silence was interrupted as a bright light was turned on and the guards below started shooting.

"Well," Hane said to nobody in particular. "I don't know about you guys, but I think it's time to go."

**_The edge of Freeze City_**

Hane ran as fast as she could, bullets ricocheting of the metal pipe she was on as she followed Kiba and Hige. They had managed to get away from the building discreetly, but all too soon the guards had found them again. She glanced backwards to check on Toboe and Tsume. The gray wolf had decided to help them out by getting them to the exit, but wasn't coming with him.

Completely surprised with herself, Hane had discovered she wasn't sure whether to disappointed or relieved.

She looked forward again as she stumbled slightly, her heart temporarily stuttering to a halt as she fought to regain her balance. Once she was able to run normally again, she let out a relieved breath.

More bullets pinged off the metal as she raced on, her legs moving in a steady rhythm. She risked another glance backwards, just to make sure Toboe was okay. For a moment, it seemed as if he was doing fine, though he was albeit slower than the others, but then stared in horror as a bullet hit the pipe especially close to his feet, and he slipped.

Hane skidded to a halt, her heart beating fast with fear for the pup as she turned. He was holding onto a piece of smaller pipeline that had been attached to the bigger one; but that was bending. She started to make her way back heedless of the bullets aimed at her, but paused as she saw Tsume beat her to it.

She continued to stare, still wary, as Tsume pulled Toboe up, and only started running again once the pup was back on his feet.

_Guess he does have a heart..._ She thought.

They were soon clear of the gunmen, and leapt off the pipes before racing through the archways covered in plants that signaled they were getting close. Tsume wasn't going to follow them past this point. Hane caught sight of the large wall that was the border of Freeze City, and followed the others as they leapt from catwalk to catwalk until the reached the top.

Kiba stopped abruptly, causing Hane and the other two boys to skid to a halt as well.

"What the hell are you stopping for?!" Hige panted.

But Kiba didn't say anything, his glacial blue gaze fixed on the stone tunnel they had just come from. Curious, Hane watched as well, feeling a wave of shock and relief crash over her as she spotted Tsume run from the shadows.

"Tsume!" Toboe shouted happily.

"This way!" Kiba said sharply before leading the way again.

Hane let Hige and Toboe go first, pausing so the Tsume could catch up. It was really weird, but she couldn't help but smirk. After all, she wouldn't have had anyone to fight with if he wasn't going to come along.

"So, you decided to haul your sorry ass to Paradise with the rest of us after all." She goaded, leaping up the wall.

Tsume didn't reply, but she was sure he heard him mutter something offensive under his breath. And all of a sudden, it was snowing. Hane let her mouth stretch into a full-blown smile as they raced into the blizzard, not taking a second thought as she leapt off the other side of the wall after Hige and Kiba. Turning, she saw Toboe hesitate at the top.

"Jump already!" Hige hollered.

"I was getting ready to, alright?!" Toboe shouted back.

"Move it!" Tsume said before pushing Toboe off with his foot.

The pup let out a yelp of surprise, and of course landed flat on his face, but didn't seem worse for wear.

"You alright, kiddo?" Hane asked dubiously as she helped him up.

"I'm fine." Toboe said, waving her off.

There was suddenly the sound a gun going off, and all of their heads turned up towards Tsume simultaneously, but he didn't move.

"Are you scared?" Kiba said, his voice level.

Tsume didn't say anything for a moment. "Yeah, you wish." He said suddenly, a smirk on his face as he leapt down. Once he had landed, they jumped down, the last part before the ground became even and flat as far as the eye could see. Which, to be honest, wasn't very far, even with Hane's keen sight.

They ran, leaving paw prints behind in the snow. Once they were a fair distance away from Freeze City, Tsume abruptly stopped and faced it. Hane slowed to a halt, waving away the others' questioning faces.

"I'll be right there. You three go on ahead."

They nodded once before racing away again. Hane watched Tsume for a moment, confusion blossoming in her mind. Why was he just... Standing there?

"Hey, are you coming or what? Don't tell me you're too chicken to go on!" She said suddenly.

Tsume turned towards her, golden eyes already glaring. "As if!" He snapped before catching up with her.

Hane grinned and ran besides him, her gaze turned towards where the others had gone.

_Well, this is it._ She thought suddenly. _Here I come, Paradise!_

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**Please review, and tell me what you thought!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Wow... Really, really long chapter here, heheh. I tried to involve Hane more without straying too far from the original dialogue in the episode, so I hope you enjoy!**

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_**The Middle of Nowhere**_

The pack - Hane wasn't really sure what else to call it- had been running non-stop for about a week now. They didn't really talk to one another, preferring to keep the focus on the road ahead, and only stopped for brief rests around once a day. Hane was sure if Toboe hadn't been with them, they would have been driven to run much longer, since the pup could barely keep up fully rested.

Kiba was always at the head of the pack, then followed by either Hige or Tsume, then Hane, and finally Toboe. The she-wolf had known that life outside Freeze City wouldn't exactly be easy, and to be honest, she had seen too many different types of weather to not at least partially wish she was back in the sheltered dome. But she had lived in the wild by herself before; she could do it again.

"Oh man. I sure am hungry." Toboe sighed, wrapping his arms around his knees.

"Yeah, you could say that again." Hige groaned.

"How long has it been since we ate anything?"

"I don't know. I guess it's been about three days or so."

"We've gone that long without eating?"

"Look, I know we're all hungry, but talking about it isn't gonna make it go away!" Hane snapped.

Hige gave her a baleful stare.

"But how much longer until we get any food?" Toboe pressed, staring at her with round eyes.

"I dunno... Another three days, I guess." Hige interrupted.

"Will you two quit your whining already?" Tsume growled from the other end of the cave. "It's only been three stupid days."

"But if we hadn't left the city, we would have something to eat right now, Hane!" Toboe insisted.

"Well, then you shouldn't have left!" Hane snarled suddenly.

Toboe flinched, causing Hane to pause.

"I'm sorry, kiddo." She apologized, feeling bad. "It's just... I don't think any of us are used to the 'tough life' yet, except for Kiba."

"We can last a lot longer... If we bask in the moonlight." Kiba said slowly. "I travelled a full month once, when I did that."

"Did you say a month?!" Hige said in disbelief.

"Well, that's a great idea Kiba, but there isn't exactly any moonlight to be had around here." Hane pointed out, still feeling a little irritated.

"The storm will pass soon enough." Kiba said peaceably. "It should stop snowing any time now. Once it does, and night draws closer, the moon will be out."

"Ah, well. Guess we'll just have to have a little faith until then, won't we..." Hane sighed, staring out at the blizzard.

"But how long is any time now?" Toboe complained, shifting uncomfortably.

"And anyway, if worse comes to worse, we can always eat each other." Tsume said.

Hige and Toboe both let out little yelps and glanced at each other at his words, while Hane just rolled her eyes and Kiba didn't react at all.

"We could start with the runt since he's gotten so weak. And of course, there's always little Porky over there." He continued, a smirk on his face.

"Wait a second, how come Kiba and Hane aren't on the menu?" Toboe said angrily.

"Because Kiba's totally full of crap, and Hane is so sour she'd be poison to anyone who tried to bite her!" Tsume snarled.

Hane shot him a tight grin. "You got that right. But it only happens to people I think are either jerks or morons."

There was a moment of silence as a draft blew in, ruffling their hair.

"Come on, cut it out!" Toboe said suddenly, standing up. "You guys don't mean it, you're just saying stuff like that 'cuz you're hungry!"

"I wouldn't bet on it, kiddo." Hane said. "This guy's been a complete jerk since we met him; it has nothing to do with whether or not he's hungry."

"Hane..." Toboe pleaded, but he was interrupted by Hige's exclamation of excitement.

The excited wolf stood up and made a run for the entrance, and out into the snow.

"Hige!" Hane yelled so she could be heard over the howling wind. "Where the hell do you think you're going?!"

When he didn't answer, she glanced at the others, but they seemed just as surprised as she was.

"Well, here we go again!" Hane sighed before running after Hige.

_**The Desert (aka still in the Middle of Nowhere)**_

Hane wrinkled her nose at the sight of the dead deer thing laying on the ground. Hige had been running ahead eagerly for the past half hour as he tried to find the source of the smell; Hane was pretty sure it was the only time he would ever lead them.

"I wonder where it came from..." Toboe said curiously as he stared down at it. "I mean, it's all by itself out here."

Hane shrugged as Hige leaned forward and sniffed it. "Who knows. At least we've got some meat now."

"You gonna eat that?" Tsume said in disbelief.

"Yeah. Aren't you gonna?" Hige said before digging in.

Hane paused for a moment before following suit. "You might as well, Tsume," She pointed out. "We don't know when we'll be able to find food again. And besides, the body's still warm, so it mustn't have died that long ago."

She started to eat, albeit more daintily than Hige, Toboe and Kiba, who were pretty much stuffing their faces with it.

"You know what, this tastes pretty good!" Toboe said, surprised as he tore off another chunk. "It's only a little bit tougher than hamburger... Hey, come on Tsume, have some! Hane's right, we still have a long way to go..."

"Go? Go where, exactly?" Tsume said sarcastically. "To that Paradise place? Off in the direction you smelled the flower?"

Hane shrugged. "We have no other leads; it seems like the best option for now."

"Come on, Kiba, tell us! What's Paradise really like?" Toboe goaded, his eyes bright.

"It's an amazing place," Hige interrupted. "The flowers are always in bloom, and there's food everywhere! Oh, and there's beautiful babes all over the place!" He added with a dreamy look on his face.

Hane let out a snort. "Typical. That's all you guys want; food and a mate. It's pretty pathetic if you ask me!"

Hige bristled slightly. "Well then, what's your idea of Paradise?"

Hane could suddenly feel the weight of everyone's stares on her. She dropped her greenish yellow gaze, feeling her heart contract in her chest. "I don't know... Just... Somewhere nice, I guess."

"_Paradise_ is just a totally unfounded fairy tale." Tsume said irritably. "And if it isn't, then it's just probably some idiot's dream."

"So then why the hell did you come with us?" Hige pointed out.

"We'll never know unless we look for it!" Toboe added, leaping to his feet.

"How far are you gonna let this guy string you along?" Tsume asked. "How far are you gonna follow this guy in pursuit of a place that doesn't even exist to begin with?!"

Hane shrugged. "Well, I'm personally following him until we get there. If you don't wanna come, then just say so."

"Fine. That's it. I can't put up with you losers anymore." Tsume scoffed before turning and walking away.

"Tsume!" Toboe exclaimed.

"Hey, where'd you think you're going all by yourself?" Hige said.

"To look for Hell I guess." Tsume responded, his voice full of sarcasm.

"Suit yourself." Kiba said simply.

Hane shot him a disbelieving glance. Alright, admittedly, she didn't like Tsume that much, but it was stupid to let the asshole go off on his own. There was no knowing what he might run into. She herself had enough bad memories of when she was out here on her own.

"Kiba-" She said, but the white wolf interrupted her.

"But remember, that set of rules you have, doesn't apply way out here." He said, his blue gaze piercing.

"You know, it really pisses me off when a smug kid like you has that know-it-all look on his face, and he's actually clueless." Tsume growled.

Kiba's eyes narrowed, but he didn't say anything else. With an indignant 'hmph', Tsume turned and continued walking away.

"Tsume!" Toboe called out desperately. "Come on, don't leave now, we've finally made some friends!"

Hane glanced at the pup._ 'We', huh? Guess I don't count then._ She thought, feeling a sudden irritation fill her.

"Play with your buddies all you want, I'm outta here." Tsume said, still not stopping.

"If you ask me, the only acting like a kid around here is him." Hige muttered.

"Don't say that..." Toboe said, still watching Tsume's retreating back. "I liked Tsume, he's really nice."

"Well, I wouldn't say he's nice, but at least he was fun to argue with..." Hane admitted with a sigh.

"Just wait here, I'm gonna go get him!" Toboe said suddenly, turning to face them.

"Wait, Toboe!" Lightning fast, Hane grabbed his arm before he could leave. "If he really wanted to stay, he would have. Maybe... Maybe it's for the best."

"I don't believe that!" Toboe said fiercely. "I really do think Tsume wants to go to Paradise; he's just confused, and lonely."

Hane paused for a moment, then released him with a sigh. "Fine, but I'm coming with you. And don't start crying if he tells us to get lost again, okay kiddo?"

Toboe grinned and nodded.

Turning towards Kiba and Hige, she added, "We'll catch up with you."

Kiba nodded his assent. "Follow our scent if you need to."

"See ya later!" Hige said with a cheery wave.

Toboe ran after Tsume, Hane behind him. "Hey, wait for us, Tsume!"

Once he had caught up with the angry wolf, he continued speaking. "Wait are you so mad about, huh? Come on, come back and join us-"

"Shut the hell up!" Tsume snarled, still refusing to turn around.

"Toboe..." Hane warned, but the pup brushed off her concern.

"You know it's dangerous to move around alone!"

"It doesn't matter, does it, we're always alone!" Tsume retorted.

"But wait, I-" Toboe reached out to touch Tsume's arm.

"Stop bothering me!" He snapped angrily, pushing Toboe so hard he fell.

Hane instantly took up a protective stance in front of the pup, her lips pulled back in a snarl of rage. "Back off! He's just a pup!"

Tsume looked surprised and a little bit guilty for a moment, as if he hadn't meant to push Toboe. But in the next heartbeat, his gaze turned hard and angry again. "And don't follow me!"

He ran off, leaving Hane still bristling as Toboe stood up. "Are you okay, kiddo?" She asked once she thought she was in control of her anger.

"I- I'm fine." He said unsteadily, brushing off the dust that still clung to him. "Can we still go after him?"

Hane shot him a half-amused, half-frustrated look. "You just don't give up, do ya?"

_**The Abandoned Ruins of a Domed City**_

"Tsume!" Toboe yelled. "Tsuuumeeeee!"

The two wolves had been searching for over an hour, with no luck. But, despite Hane's protestations, Toboe had insisted they continue looking.

"TSUME!" Hane shouted.

Frustrated, she revealed her true form; she could howl louder than she could yell.

_"TSUME!"_ She yelled again.

Their cries echoed throughout the city that was in even worse state than the ruins of Freeze City. Toboe walked forward, making a small noise of surprise when his boot stepped on something, making a small clinking sound.

_"Lift your foot."_ Hane ordered.

At his compliance, she walked forward, and sniffed what he had stepped on. It was metal, no doubt about it, but there were no dangerous scents coming from it. Satisfied, she stepped back._ "We should split up; this city is big, he could be anywhere. But be careful, okay?"_

Toboe nodded in understanding before running off. Hane's ear twitched, and she turned her head before padding away, her paws making small thumping sounds that made puffs of dust rise.

Ironically, she was reminded of the first time she had been looking for Tsume, before she had met him. _And before I knew he was a complete jerk._ It was the same kind of sticky white dust that came from rubble that stuck to her dark brown legs, but this time, she didn't bother trying to shake it off.

She could faintly smell Tsume's spicy scent in the hot wind that blew through the deserted city, and headed in its general direction. Every once in awhile, she let out two howls; one for Tsume, the other for Toboe. Despite how empty the city appeared, she didn't want to take any chances. But every time, Tsume didn't reply, and Toboe did.

Still wandering in the direction of Tsume's scent, Hane heard something... The clanking of metal. She spun around, her hackles raised and her lips peeled back in a snarl of warning, but nothing was there. After a few moments of silence, she continued walking again, still tense.

Soon, she started to bristle at the smallest sound or movement, even jumping once as she heard Toboe howl again for Tsume._ Something isn't right..._

Eventually, Toboe's calls sounded louder and louder as he got closer. She let out an answering howl in return, her dark brown tail swishing irritably from side to side. She knew that Tsume was avoiding them purposefully, but if they continued to be unable to find them, they would have to rejoin Kiba and Hige.

She padded to where she had last heard Toboe, intent on telling him that it was time to go back. She spotted him, still disguising himself as a human on an outcropping of rock. She was too far away for him to see her yet, and she opened her mouth to call him, she saw something glisten in the fading light. She paused, unsure of what it was as she narrowed her eyes at the small crevice where she had seen it.

Again, light flashed off it, making it shine briefly, and Hane stiffened. It was the barrel of a gun.

_"Toboe."_ She whispered, her voice a croak of shock. _"TOBOE!"_

She started running, her paws pounding against the earth as she raced towards the pup. He turned around a confused expression on his face at the panic in her voice. _Too late, too late!_

She could still see the glint of metal out of the corner in her eye, and felt another surge of panic. _He has to get out of there!_ Time seemed to slow down as Toboe's eyes flicked towards the place where Hane had seen the gun, and widened in horror. _Dammit, I'm too far!_

CRACK!

At the last second, Hane spotted a blur of gray fur, and blood spurt into the air as Tsume got hit instead of Toboe. A heartbeat later, Hane was beside the two of them.

"Tsume!" She gasped, changing back into a human.

The gray wolf didn't say anything in return, his teeth gritted to keep him from yelling. The bullet had hit his leg, tearing the leather had covered it, and was oozing blood.

"We have to get out of here!" She said, looking at Toboe.

"I'm fine!" Tsume spat.

Whoever was holding that gun fired again, and the pup jumped as it embedded itself in the rock by his feet.

"Look, I know you're all tough and stuff, but this isn't the time to act brave!" Hane snapped. "Now come on, before you get yourself killed!"

She leapt off the outcropping, closely followed by Toboe, and then Tsume, albeit he was a lot more reluctant.

"We have to get out into the open, so that we can see what's chasing us!" Tsume said through clenched teeth.

"But won't that make us more exposed?" Toboe said in confusion, eyeing Tsume's leg with worry.

Hane let out a short, barking laugh. "We're always exposed, Toboe. Get used to it."

The sound of clanking metal and grinding machinery alerted the three wolves to their attacker. "Are you sure it's a human?" Toboe said meekly as they started to go as fast as they could with Tsume's injured leg.

Hane dared a glance backwards. She felt a sudden shock as she saw some kind of giant spidery... Thing made out of metal, climb up one of the destroyed buildings.

"Nope!" She replied, pushing the pup forwards.

_**Highway leading out of the Ruined City**_

"Can't you hurry?" Hane snapped as she glanced backwards. There it was again; the machine that had been chasing them for the past hour.

"I can't exactly _run_, can I?!" Tsume growled.

"Well maybe if you weren't such a stubborn idiot, you would let me carry you, and lose this thing!" Hane retorted, eyes blazing with fury.

"No way! I'm fine on my own!" Tsume said angrily, only to sway slightly as the loss of blood made him dizzy.

"Are you okay?!" Toboe said to Tsume, shooting Hane a panicked glance.

Tsume snarled. "Stay away!" He said, pushing Toboe behind him as he continued to limp on.

Hane let out a noise of discontent. "We need to lose this thing..." Her voice trailed off as they reached the end of the highway. It was a miracle the suspended road had supported itself for so long, but here it collapsed, leaving a large drop below them.

The sound of the machine made the three of them turn, seeing the thing roll towards them from far off.

"We're gonna have to jump!" Tsume said to the both of them.

"But-" Toboe said, until Hane interrupted him.

"I agree, but are you gonna make it with that leg of yours?"

Tsume sent her a withering look. "I'll manage."

Hane shrugged. "Hey, I'm being concerned for your welfare is all. I mean, if you mess it up any more-"

"Look out!" Hane had been too distracted by what she had been about to say to notice when the machine fired at her. Tsume slammed into her, sending them both over the edge. They landed with a loud thump and a muttered curse from Hane as Tsume landed on her.

"Get OFF!" She snapped, pushing him off her.

He rolled off with a grunt of pain as his bad leg touched the ground, and Hane felt a moment of guilt as she got up. Then the bullets began to fall in a rain of death, and Hane barely had enough time to pull Tsume to his feet and shove him and Toboe roughly behind a wall.

Toboe darted his head forward to see the machine, only to jerk backwards as a bullet whistled past his nose.

"What the heck is that thing?" He asked in a mix of terror and fascination.

"How should I know?" Tsume and Hane said in unison before glaring at each other.

The machine paused for a second before retreating. Toboe and Hane let out identical sighs of relief, but Tsume grimaced in pain.

"Tsume!" Toboe gasped, glancing down at his wound.

Hane did the same, and winced slightly. His wound had opened again, and he was holding it tightly to try to stop the bleeding as scarlet liquid leaked through his fingers.

"Dammit." Tsume growled. "That stench of this place is starting to make me sick."

Hane didn't say anything, but her hand hovered near Tsume to help him if he needed it. But, knowing him, she doubted it. After a moment, he stood up, limping badly as he led the way. Hane and Toboe followed closely, trying to ignore the drops of blood that fell to the dusty ground with every step Tsume took.

They finally made it out of the rubble that surrounded the destroyed city, allowing them to see clearly in all directions. Ahead, barely visible because of the moonlight bouncing of the ice that now covered the ground, was a ravine that cut deep into the earth. Covering it was a sort of ice ramp. Toboe glanced over his shoulder, causing Hane to do the same, and she got her first good look of what was chasing them.

The machine was big, with the kind of barrel that tanks had, and one red light that seemed to glare at them as it rolled forward. It was certainly faster than them at this point, with Tsume limping as much as he was, but if they could just get over the ravine...

Tsume was trying hard to go faster now, short gasps of pain escaping with with every step. Toboe was at his side, while Hane brought up the rear. They made it onto the bridge, but were forced to slow down if they didn't want to slip and fall. The rumbling from the machine was getting louder, but was interrupted by the sound of something smashing. Hane turned around, her body tense. The thing had secured itself onto the ice by impaling metal spikes to keep it stable.

And then it aimed at them. Neither of the three wolves barely had time to react as the machine opened fire, and the ice beneath cracked and splintered. Hane gasped and threw her hands out to balance, even though she knew it was futile. Then Toboe let out a yell as the bridge shattered, and they fell down, down, down.

Hane felt her stomach drop as she tried to think of a solution while she fell to her death. A chunk of falling ice hit her shoulder once, and she let out a yelp of pain, but then the ground rushed up to meet her and everything went black.

_**The Bottom of the Ravine; a few minutes later**_

"Hane?! Hane!" Someone was shaking her insistently.

With a groan, she weakly tried to push them away as she opened her eyes. She blinked as the world came into focus, revealing Toboe's worried face and the sky far above the ravine. "What happened?"

"You hit the ground pretty hard." He explained as she sat up. "I was lucky enough to land in a soft pile of snow."

"Where's Tsume?" She said groggily, still blinking the stars from her eyes.

Toboe glanced over her shoulder. "He... He's still unconscious."

Hane turned, wincing as her shoulder throbbed in pain, but scrambled to her feet as she spotted Tsume's prone body. In two strides, she was by his side, head spinning slightly, but she had more important things to attend to. Tsume's wound was bleeding again, and she could have sworn the cut was bigger than before. Then again, having it bashed against ice probably didn't help. Gingerly, she placed her fingers on his forehead. His skin was feverish, and judging by the shine to it, she guessed that he had been knocked out by a stray chunk of ice.

"We need to get him out of here." She said before lifting him up. Carefully, she wrapped his arms around her neck and held him there so she could walk properly with him being pretty much dead weight on her back.

"Man, at least I wasn't imagining things when I thought he was really heavy when he pushed me off the stupid cliff." She grunted, taking another slow step. "Is the machine thing that was stalking us gone?"

"I don't know." Toboe said nervously, walking besides her. "I can't smell it, and I haven't seen it yet."

"How long was I out, by the way?" Hane asked.

Toboe shrugged. "Only a few minutes."

"Good."

After a few more minutes of struggling, Hane and Toboe found a little cave that would hopefully shelter them until Tsume woke up. With a sigh of relief, Hane gently placed him on the floor before plopping down next to him.

"Whew!" She exclaimed. "I'm just glad he isn't as heavy as Hige!"

Despite the situation, Toboe let out a giggle. Hane grinned at him, before rolling her wounded shoulder a few times. The throbbing had lessened, but there was certainly going to be a bruise later on.

"Do you think we should clean Tsume's wound?" Toboe asked suddenly, looking at the unconscious man worriedly. "If it gets infected, the wound will take much longer to heal, and we don't really need that right now."

"You're forgetting that Tsume doesn't want to tag along anymore." Hane reminded.

"I think he'll change his mind." Toboe said confidently.

Hane sighed. "You're a strange one, kiddo, you know that? Fine. But I would prefer it if his wound became so infected that we had to cut it off. Then maybe he wouldn't be such an asshole." She grumbled.

Toboe frowned at her words. "I think you like him too, you know." He said. "Because you guys are so alike, you fight all the time, but it also means you could become really good friends. I mean, if you just-"

"Sorry, kiddo." Hane interrupted. "But no. Tsume and I... We're absolutely nothing alike."

Before Toboe could say anything else on the topic of her becoming friends with Tsume, Hane crawled over to the gray wolf and inspected his wound. The blood, thankfully, wasn't gushing out anymore, but was still oozing some of the red liquid. It was obvious that bits of gravel and plaster dust had gotten into the wound. It was also rather deep, but it still hadn't gone through to the muscle.

Wrinkling her nose, Hane sighed. "Well, this isn't going to be pleasant."

Carefully, she propped Tsume's wounded leg on her lap, and after a moment's hesitation, began to clean it. Hane, being a wolf, normally enjoyed blood, since she was obviously a carnivore, but to taste the blood of one of her own... Well, it wasn't exactly a picnic. But she had reminded herself that she had often done this for her friends in her pack when they had been wounded, and she resisted the urge to gag.

Soon, the wound was almost clean, and Tsume chose that precise moment to wake up.

"Stop that!" Hane was suddenly pushed backwards as Tsume sat up violently, his golden eyes wide. "Don't ever touch me!"

Hane pushed away her sudden feeling of hurt. "Jeez, soooorry, I was trying to clean your wound for you so it wouldn't get infected and fall off."

Tsume was silent for a moment, staring outside. "What's it doing?"

Immediately knowing what he was talking about, Hane shrugged. "If it's still up there, it hasn't tried to make a move. It took quite a while to drag your sorry ass into this cave."

Tsume glared at her, but Hane ignored him. _What a jerk! Try to help him, and he tries to bite your head off. I can't believe Toboe thinks he's his friend._

Toboe gave her a reproachful look, and interrupted. "Yeah, it looks like we gave it the slip."

At his words, Tsume let out a low sigh, and lay back down with obvious difficulty. Glancing at him, Hane felt the tiniest bit sorry for her harsh words.

"Wow..." Toboe said slowly in amazement. "You're covered in scars."

Hane looked at him sharply. She knew better than anyone that someone's scars, mental or physical, were nearly always a touchy subject for anyone.

"That one, there on your chest... Man, it's really cool!" Toboe continued, impressed.

"Toboe!" Hane hissed.

The pup glanced back at her in confusion. "What?"

Tsume turned on his side, facing the cave wall.

"Well, now you've done it, kiddo." Hane muttered.

There was an awkward silence for a few more minutes, and the only thing to listen to was the wind howling outside and the wolves' light breathing.

"I wonder what happened to Kibe and Hige." Toboe said finally.

Hane shrugged. "Hopefully still waiting for us."

"I bet they're pretty worried about us by now."

Hane snorted. "Hige maybe, but Kiba? That guy doesn't seem to care about anything at all, except getting to Paradise."

"I don't think so... I think he's just a lot more quiet and focused than the rest of us." Toboe said, but his voice didn't sound so sure.

"What about you, Tsume?" Hane said, glancing over at the silent wolf. "Think Kiba's got what it takes to get us to Paradise?"

He didn't say anything, causing Hane and Toboe to glance at each other. There was silence for a few heartbeats before he finally spoke.

"I don't trust anyone. And because of that, no one has to trust me. That way, it keeps things nice and simple." He said, staring at the wall.

"I don't care." Toboe said kindly. "I still like you anyway, Tsume. And Hane does too." With his last words, he sent the she-wolf a pleading look.

Hane sighed, but added slowly, "Well, I wouldn't go as far as to say I like you, but you're certainly fun to piss off."

Tsume fell into silence again, but that proved to be useful, as all of a sudden, the three wolves could hear the grinding sound of machinery. Tsume straightened, while Hane and Toboe crouched in defensive positions as the sound got louder.

"Ah, damn!" Tsume cursed, trying to stand up.

But in a flash, Toboe and Hane were holding him in place. "Are you insane?!" The she-wolf snapped. "If you try to attack with your leg in that shape, the only thing that's bound to happen is that you'll get killed!"

Tsume let out a harsh laugh. "Well at least you'll finally have something to eat!"

"Don't be stupid!" Toboe exclaimed before standing, Hane following suite. "Hane and I'll distract it so you can get away!"

The both of them turned around, ready to go outside and face the monster, when Tsume cried out with something akin to panic in his voice, "Don't do it!"

Toboe and Hane paused, and looked back at them. Hane had questions in her green-yellow eyes, but Toboe smiled. "You can trust us, it's okay." He reassured before running outside.

Hane paused for a moment, giving Tsume a grim smile before following the pup. "Run once it's facing away from you!" She said over her shoulder.

The moment the two wolves were out in the open, the machine started open firing. Feeling that it would be easier if she just dropped the illusion once again, Hane's human form vanished. She raced away, hearing the bullets smash into the ground right behind her. But all of a sudden, the attack stopped, and Hane skidded to a halt, her fur bristling.

The machine had spotted Tsume, and Hane felt her blood run cold as it started shooting. Tsume limped away as fast as he could, but it would be stupid to think he could run faster than that machine could shoot and aim. He vanished behind a bend in the ravine, and the monster stopped shooting the small bullets it had before firing again. It smashed into the fragile ice, and it came crashing down, blocking Hane's view of Tsume. Then it marched forwards, obviously going to finish him off.

With a snarl, Hane launched herself at the pile of junk, landing lightly on one of its legs. She bit into the metal, her ears flat against her head and her eyes sparkling with rage. For a brief moment of triumph, the machine stuttered, and the leg stopped moving for a moment. But then it began to move again, and Hane was flying all of a sudden. She smashed into the side of the ravine, her wounded shoulder sending spirals of pain through her.

She shrugged off the agony and pushed off the slick wall, landing in front of the machine, blocking it from Tsume. Its red 'eyes' focused on her, just as a howl pierced the frigid air. And out of nowhere, Kiba burst forth and leapt onto the machine. Before any of them could react, he sank his teeth into one of the red lights, a growl rumbling from deep within his throat.

Satisfied that it was satisfied for the time being, Hane turned towards Tsume, and automatically put up her human illusion again. "Are you alright?" She demanded, spotting the fresh blood turning the snow red.

"I'm fine!" He ground out, glaring at her with his golden eyes.

"You sure look it." Hane said dryly before offering him a hand. He reluctantly grasped it and she pulled him up.

The sound of bullets made both of them tense and turn. Spotting Kiba running in the opposite direction, the machine on his tail, Hane pushed Tsume.

"Get out of here, we'll take care of it!" She shouted over the noise.

"HEY!" Hearing Hige's shout, they both looked upwards. "Up here, Tsume!" He yelled, frantically waving.

Before Tsume could say anything, Hane ran off after the machine. Kiba was scaling the wall of the ravine, too fast for the machinery to shoot. It finally seemed to take some initiative, instead shooting where Kiba would be instead of where he was. The ice shattered, and for one heart-stopping moment, Hane couldn't see Kiba anymore. But then a white blur leapt out of the cloud of snow, headed straight for the machine. Hane managed to see that it was Kiba, thankfully alive, with a giant icicle clamped in his jaws as he impaled the machine with it.

Just as quickly, he jumped to safety, and Hane leapt upwards onto a small ridge so she could help if needed. The machine let out a whirring sound, and collapsed, its legs folding up like paper beneath it. But its red lights still glared, and it began to clamber to its feet once again. It shot towards where Kiba stood on an icy outcropping, obviously planning to make him fall.

Too swiftly to see if Kiba was alright, Hane leapt upon the machine, teeth bared as she once again dropped her illusion. She struck it forcefully, causing it to stagger. She clambered onto its head, where she was certain it wouldn't be able to shoot her.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Kiba at the top of the ravine, with Tsume, Hige and Toboe, ready to throw himself back into battle.

_"I can handle this!"_ She shouted towards them._ "And weep as you watch a woman do a man's job!"_ Half grinning, half snarling, she bit into the machine's head, only to be thrown off as it whirled around.

She landed lightly in front of it, adrenalin coursing through her veins. It had been too long since she had had a challenge to deal with. She was bruised and battered, but still ready to tear that thing apart. But all of a sudden, it was turning away from her, trying to clamber up the ravine.

_It's trying to go after the boys._ She suddenly realized.

With a snarl she leapt so she was above it and hurtled into it. Intent on knocking it back to the bottom of the ravine, and not to keep herself safe, she didn't think about her shoulder as she crashed into it with too much force. Her shoulder muscles shrieked in protest at the painful impact, but she felt a fierce satisfaction as they both tumbled into the snow below.

Hane staggered to her feet, teeth still bared in a snarl. The machine was righting itself, and she felt disbelief flash through her. _How is that thing still standing?_

_"Ready to dance some more?"_ She growled at it, green-yellow eyes gleaming.

"Get out of there!" Startled, Hane's head whipped upwards, her ears flat against her head. It was Toboe who had called out, his face filled with fear as he stared at her. Glancing at the other three, she saw similar expressions of horror on their faces as well.

She turned her gaze back to the machine, and felt her heart stutter to a halt she saw the roaring wave behind it. _Avalanche._ It loomed above, making the sound of a thousand elk running at once, and she briefly wondered how the hell she could have missed it. There was no time to run, no time to save herself, not even any time to regret that she would never make it to Paradise with the others. Hane could only breathe in sharply with horror and hear the others faintly yell out her name before the snow crashed over her and the machine, and everything went black.

_**The Next Morning...**_

Hane slowly returned to consciousness, her senses returning one by one. Touch; she was disguised as a human again. No surprise there, since it was pretty much a defense mechanism that had set in after two years of living in a human-infested city. Most of the time, she could even sleep as a human, though when she was knocked unconscious she normally reverted to her true form. Her clothes, hair and skin were soaking wet and freezing, but she was too weak to even shiver.

Next, taste. Her mouth was filled with the coppery tang of blood, but there was also a cool, fresh taste, probably snow.

Sound. This was probably one of the things that was freaking her out the most; she couldn't hear anything, like someone had stuffed cotton in her ears, and the profound silence pressed down on her oppressively.

Sight. Hane, starting to get a little freaked out now, was desperately trying to open her eyes, to see something. But either it was pitch black where she was, or her eyes weren't actually open, because she couldn't see anything. Hane tried to push down her panic, knowing that if she had a limited amount of air, hyperventilation would just kill her faster.

Smell. Hane breathed in deeply, aching to smell something that would mean she wasn't dead. But as she inhaled, something clogged up her nose, and she gasped. But she was choking, and trying desperately to get some air, but there was only snow.

Unable to stop herself any longer, her fight or flight instinct kicked in and she was kicking and clawing and screaming into the snow she was trapped under._ Out, out out you need to GET OUT!_ Her brain yelled at her.

But all too soon, with her lack of oxygen and the heavily packed snow, her movements became weaker and weaker, until they stilled altogether. Soon, she was just lying, alone in the dark, unable to even try and cough out the melted snow in her lungs. Incapable of hearing anything else, she could soon listen to the rushing of her blood, and the sound of her heartbeat slowing down.

_But what about Paradise?_ She thought woozily, feeling her heart skip a beat as it started to stop._ I was going... To go... To Paradise... With the... Others..._

Too tired to try and keep thinking, not when she was so close to death, Hane's mind began bordering on unconscious, slipping in and out of sleep and reality. Memories and the cold bite of the snow began to mingle in her head, and the small sound of something making scratching sounds... _Wait._

The sounds should have signaled that something either good or bad was about to happen, but Hane was too far gone to give a damn anymore, or even question that she could hear something in the first place.

But then, something burst through the snow, accidentally brushing against Hane's face as it pushed away the remaining flakes. Too weak to be fully aware of her surroundings, she just heard muffled voices and felt hands grasp her shoulders, too warm against her freezing skin. Then she was being moved, pulled up, up, up until her movements were no longer restricted by the dense snow. On any other occasion, Hane would have tried to attack whoever was doing this, but she couldn't even breathe, let alone try and lift a hand to claw them.

"Is she dead?" Someone's panicked voice swam through her head, muffled but familiar.

"I don't think so," Someone else said, just as someone placed her fingers against her neck. "I can feel a heartbeat, but it's fading."

"She's swallowed too much snow!" Another voice said, off to the side. "She can't breathe!"

Someone shook her, but it was like her mind was somewhere else, feeling it distantly. Then, someone pounded her back, hard, and her body somehow managed to jump into action. Her back arching with a sudden spasm, Hane's mouth flew open as she tried breathe, but the snow continued to obstruct her lungs. She started to cough, retching and spitting out the melted snow that was keeping her from breathing.

"Hane!" Someone gasped off to the side, their voice suddenly louder.

The she-wolf continued to hack up water until her arms were trembling with the effort of keeping her up. With a few more coughs that were considerably more clear, she rolled onto her side, her chest heaving as she sucked in air. Her eyes closed as she breathed wheezily, and the rest of her body started to tremble violently from both shock and cold. She lay there for a few moments as she tried to catch her breath before slowly opening her eyes.

Toboe was crouched by her side, a worried look on his face. Hige, with a matching expression, was off to the side, Kiba standing next to him. Tsume was the farthest away, sitting on the cold ground as he watched her carefully.

"Well," Hane rasped, her face still pressed against the snow. "I certainly hope you guys all saw me kicking that machine's butt, because I will not be doing that again."

Toboe and Hige grinned in relief, and even Kiba had the faintest of smiles on his face. Tsume, of course, looked like he couldn't care less, but that was typical of him so Hane decided to ignore it. She sat up, still shaking slightly with cold.

"What do you think you were doing, though?!" Hige suddenly said. "No offense, but was seriously stupid, you could have gotten killed!"

"Well, I'm glad you're concerned about me," Hane said dryly. "But if you must know, I was thinking that I needed to save you guys."

"Ever since I met you guys," Hige said, shaking his head. "Nothing but trouble."

Hane grinned at him. "Don't say it isn't exciting."

"Not when we nearly get ourselves killed!" He replied heatedly. "And Kiba, are you alright? I saw that thing shoot your leg."

"It's just a scratch." Kiba reassured. "If anything, Hane went through much worse than we did."

Hane smiled again, but this time it didn't reach her eyes. "Oh, don't worry. There's much worse than getting buried underneath snow, trust me."

"I'm glad you guys came for us." Toboe said suddenly. "I don't know how, but... But I knew you would come and help us."

"Well, don't get too used to it, kid." Hige said, still a little irritated.

"I didn't ask for help." Tsume growled, breaking his silence. "Why would you do that? Risk your life for me? And don't try telling me it's because we're _friends_."

At his harsh words, Hane saw Toboe flinch a little, and felt anger rise up in her, but she kept her mouth clamped shut. Underneath her rage, she could feel dismay of her own. She didn't particularly like Tsume; in fact she would go so far as to say she really, _really_ disliked him. But... Maybe she had been hoping the gray wolf would at least be grateful.

"That's easy." Kiba said, the soft breeze buffeting his hair around his face. "It was just instinct."

Tsume was quiet for a moment, before standing up stiffly. He had barely started walking when Toboe was at his side, putting an arm over his shoulder so he could support him. Hane felt a mingling pride and curiosity in her as she got to her feet as well, staring at the two of them. Maybe Tsume wasn't exactly being nice... But he hadn't pushed Toboe away yet either. And for her, that was certainly an improvement.

She stood as well, wrapping her sopping wet leather jacket tighter around her as another cold breeze wafted past her.

"Do you want some help?" Hige offered, but Hane waved him off.

"I'm fine." She said quietly. She started walked behind Tsume and Toboe, keeping a mindful eye on the both of them. Hige and Kiba followed, their feet scuffing the ground and leaving behind pawprints.

Hane felt her illusion fade away, until she was walking on all four paws again. Lifting her muzzle to the air, she breathed in deeply. There; the faintest scent of lunar flowers. She grinned. Maybe this trip hadn't been such a bad idea after all.

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**Review, please! :3**


	6. Chapter 6

**So this is an extra chapter that takes place between episodes 4 and 5! There's a lot more wolfy stuff going on, and I thought it was a good opportunity to get some character development in there. I was also planning on also adding some of the extra storylines that appeared in the Wolf's Rain manga version. Anyway, enjoy!**

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_**Frozen Wasteland**_

Hane sighed, pushing a few stray strands of dark brown hair behind her ear. "Do you smell anything, Hige?"

"Besides you guys and the really, really faint smell of lunar flowers? Nothing, sorry." Hige said, pausing from his moping for a moment.

Hane glanced at the others. They had been lucky enough to find shelter underneath an outcropping of rock in the middle of nowhere, but none of them had eaten for at least a week, and the she-wolf was starting to worry for Toboe.

"I'm gonna go out and look for something to eat." She said finally, walking into the buffeting wind.

"Great idea!" Hige said, suddenly full of enthusiasm.

"I'll come with you." Kiba said, standing up.

Hane looked back at him, surprised. It was true, all five of the wolves knew each other a lot better now, but Kiba was always the most quiet of them, but not in a shy way. It just seemed as if he was always looking at a faraway land when he spoke, as if he was never really present in terms of mind unless it was needed.

He walked past her, the snow-filled wind dusting his hair with small snowflakes. "You coming?"

Hane paused for a moment, looking back at Hige, Tsume and Toboe. "Will you guys be okay? We might be gone awhile."

Tsume snorted. "Hige and I aren't pups, you know. We can handle ourselves."

Hane resisted the urge to snap back at him and ran after Kiba, who was already nearly invisible in the falling snow. Once she was beside him, she asked curiously, "Where do you think we should look? I mean, we haven't scented any food for ages now."

"Anywhere, I guess." Kiba said, shrugging slightly. "But the storm will let up soon, it might be easier to track something to eat then."

"Oh." The two wolves walked in companionable silence for a while. Soon enough, the flakes of snow stopped falling down as swiftly, and no longer bit at Hane's exposed cheeks. Another few minutes later, they stopped falling altogether.

Hane glanced at Kiba, incredulous. "How'd you do that?"

"Do what?" He asked, turning his level blue gaze towards her.

She waved her hand about. "You know, how you tell the weather all the time? I mean, you're even more reliable than those machines the humans use."

The white wolf shrugged. "I just know."

"Well that's helpful." Hane sighed. "I was hoping that you could tell me how to figure out when it was going to rain."

Kiba, sensing that she was teasing, gave her a half-grin before stopping. "Do you smell that?"

Hane lifted her nose and sniffed deeply. The faint but delectable scent of prey wafted into her nose. She let out a low groan. "Please tell me I'm not hallucinating... But is that the smell of rabbit?"

Kiba was looking very hungry himself. "No... No, you're not hallucinating."

Hane dropped her illusion, standing in the snow with her tail high up in the air._ "Then let's go!"_ She yelped before racing away.

In a heartbeat, Kiba was running by her side in his true form as well, his yellow eyes fixed on the horizon. Considering the amount of snow that had fallen, the dark brown and white wolves were moving pretty fast, and it wasn't long before they encountered the tracks of their prey.

Kiba lowered his muzzle, eying the small tracks that led away from them. _"You're wrong."_

_"What? How? It's a rabbit, isn't it?"_ Hane replied, baffled.

_"What I meant to say is that it's a hare, not a rabbit."_ Kiba corrected, with what Hane was sure was the faintest hint of amusement glimmering his eyes. _"Been a long time since you've hunted, I assume?"_

Hane sighed, ears twitching. _"Maybe."_

Kiba lifted his head. _"Let's keep going."_

The two of them started to run again, the crunch of their paws on the snow absorbed into the ground of the desolate landscape, and soon enough, the scent of hare was strong enough that Hane could practically taste the fresh meat. Her green-yellow eyes roved the horizon, straining for any hint of movement.

_"There!"_ She suddenly gasped, her ears pointed forwards.

The smallest flash of white fur against an even more white landscape was what had caught her attention. Even from such a distance, Hane could tell the hare was scrawny, probably only the equivalent of a snack if all five of them at it, but to be honest, she was too hungry to care.

She glanced at Kiba. The white wolf nodded his head once in understanding and raced off, arcing ever so slightly so he would be on the hare's other side. Knowing that it would be impossible to sneak up on their prey on this flat landscape, Hane pressed herself against the ground and slowly stalked closer. If she was lucky, she would be able to get it in one pounce, and if she wasn't she could either run it down or let Kiba catch it.

The going was slow, arduous work. Hane had to freeze every time the hare so much as twitched, fearing that it had either heard her or caught her scent. But it was either too dumb or too tired to even turn its head to check for danger, and was soon snuffling the ground again.

Hane crept closer, and closer, until she was close enough that she would only have to take two strides and a leap to catch it. Her mouth watered, and she wriggled her haunches. _Just wait a little longer..._

She ran, her paws crunching loudly against the snow. The hare, probably realizing that trying to see what was chasing it would get it killed, bounded off frantically. Hane raced after it, her dark brown fur buffeted by the wind as she got closer. Adrenaline was coursing through her veins, and she let out an excited whoop. She had forgotten how much fun it was to actually hunt.

The hare veered to right suddenly, obviously trying to lose her, but Hane was not deterred. With a sudden lurch forwards, the hare was between her paws and Hane bared her teeth in a snarl. The hare only had time to let out a pitiful shriek before her powerful jaws clamped around its body. With one shake, it was dead.

Kiba came bounding up to her. _"Nice catch."_ He said simply, eyeing the carcass. Contrary to what Hane had originally believed, the hare was actually quite big for the conditions it was living in.

_"Thanks. But we should hurry and get back to the others."_ Hane reminded before picking up the dead hare.

Kiba nodded his head once before falling into step besides her.

**_Later on..._**

The two wolves, having walked through the night while resisting the temptation to eat the hare, finally arrived at the outcropping where they had left the others during the early morning. Hige and Toboe were fast asleep, with Tsume standing guard when Kiba and Hane found them

"Wow, you actually caught something to eat, Kiba." Tsume said sarcastically, but there was the slightest glint of hunger in his eyes.

"It was Hane, actually." Kiba said, switching to his human form.

Hane followed suite so that Tsume wouldn't see her fur puff up with pride. "Yep. Little sucker wasn't that hard to catch, actually." She said modestly.

Tsume snorted, but didn't say anything else. Hige's nose started twitching in his sleep, and one amber eye opened sleepily. "Is that food I smell, or am I still dreaming?"

"Nope, you're not dreaming." Hane said cheerfully. "Kiba and I actually managed to find something to eat."

Hige's eyes opened fully and he shot into a sitting position. "Really?!"

Hane laughed out loud. "See for yourself." She said, waving the dead hare in front of his face.

Hige made a move to grab it, but Hane pulled it out of reach. "Wake Toboe up first." She chided. "If anything, you'll probably eat his share before we can blink."

Hige groaned, but rolled over and prodded the sleeping pup. "Dude, wake up! Hane brought us food!"

"Huh?" Toboe's eyes blinked open. "Wazzat about food?"

"Hane caught a rabbit!" Hige repeated, poking him insistently. "Get up!"

"It's a hare, actually." Hane corrected him, tossing a grin over at Kiba. The white wolf's mouth quirked upwards in the faintest of smiles.

Toboe let out a small moan of complaint, but sat up, rubbing his eyes.

"Rise and shine, kiddo." Hane said. "We got breakfast! And it isn't some deer that was dead for an undetermined amount of time in the sun."

"Hey!" Hige exclaimed. "You ate it too!"

"Only because I was starving." Hane reminded him. "And in any case, this will taste better."

Toboe was more alert now, his nose twitching as he eyed the hare. "Can we eat now?"

"Yes, please, I'm so hungry!" Hige pleaded.

"You guys are so pathetic." Tsume said from where he leaned against the rock.

Hane rolled her eyes, her mood already soured because of him. "Fine, then you don't have to eat."

Tsume looked irritated, but dropped his gaze. "I didn't say that."

"I didn't think you did." Hane replied snarkily.

Hige sighed. "Would you guys just stop? You've been at each others throats ever since we all met, and I really wanna start eating."

"Whatever." Hane muttered.

She sat down on the floor, and quickly divided the hare so they would get a roughly equal share according to their size. Toboe got both the head and a foreleg, Hige got the chest and stomach (after much persuasion), and Kiba, Tsume and Hane had a leg each.

Despite the originally tense atmosphere, the food soon lightened them all up, even Tsume, who was scowling just a little bit less than usual. After a while, Hige threw a scrap of fur at Toboe, who then responded throwing an ear back at him. Unfortunately, Hige managed to duck, and the ear hit Tsume full in the face. The 'meal' then escalated into a full on food fight before the meager remainders were picked clean.

Hige leaned back, hands behind his head as he stared at the flat land, a satisfied smile on his face. "Well, that didn't hit the spot, but it certainly came close!" He sighed happily.

Toboe, still picking out scraps of meat from his hair, scowled. "Your aim was good enough, apparently."

Hane chuckled and ruffled his hair, much to the pup's displeasure. "Relax, kiddo! I don't know about you guys, but I think that we really need to relax a bit. I mean, come on! This is like... What do the humans call it? A road trip. Except, you know, there's no road, and we're going on paw, and we won't be returning from our destination. Hopefully."

Kiba tilted his head once in agreement.

"But, you do know we might die, right?" Tsume said, his golden eyes dark. "I mean, the likelihood of Paradise even existing is, well, _nonexistent_."

"Here we go again." Hane chanted loudly. "Don't you ever tire of being such a downer?"

"I'm being realistic." Tsume said sharply. "The only reason I hopped onto this crazy train was because I was bored."

"Or maybe it's just 'cuz you belong." Hane said sarcastically. "I mean, otherwise you would have ditched us a long time ago."

"I almost did, remember?" Tsume snapped.

"But then you changed your mind." Hane replied sweetly. "So, please shut up."

Tsume scoffed angrily, crossing his arms over his chest. Hane smirked, glad to have finally won a round, and laid down. Her hands behind her head, she stared upwards at the tiny cracks in the rock, easily able to discern them.

"When should we get moving?" She asked, her gaze turning towards Kiba.

He shrugged. "You haven't managed to get any sleep lately, so we'll leave at nightfall."

Hane sighed. "Just because I'm a female, doesn't mean I'll shatter if I don't get my beauty sleep." She grumbled.

"Well, _I'm_ still tired!" Toboe piped up. "And Tsume stayed up all of last night!"

"That settles it, then." Kiba said. "Hige, you keep guard."

"What? Why me?" Hige spluttered, sitting up.

"Because you sleep more than any of us." Tsume growled. "It's time for you to pull your weight."

"Psht." Hige grumbled. "When I fall asleep because I didn't get a chance to nap, I'll blame you guys."

"Yeah, yeah." Hane said, suppressing a yawn.

Preferring to sleep in her true form, Hane changed back into a wolf and curled up, her dark muzzle tickled by her tail. Toboe did the same, snuggling against her back and laid his muzzle on his paws. Within moments, he was sleeping.

Out of the corner of her eye, Hane watched as Tsume stalked to the other end of the outcropping, close to the soft breeze that was now blowing. He sat down, one of his knees drawn up so he could rest his arm on it. He didn't close his eyes, instead staring at the desolate landscape.

Kiba settled down, crossing his paws and laying his head on them. He was also looking at the snowy horizon, but his expression was different compared to Tsume's. His gaze was distant, as if he could see the path to Paradise carved into the very ground they stood on, or the faintest glow at the end of the world. If Hane strained, she almost thought she could see it too.

But once she blinked her green-gold eyes again, what she had thought she saw vanished. With a small sigh, she let her eyes close. It wasn't long before she was sleeping soundly as well.

_**Nightfall**_

"Hane." Someone shook the she-wolf insistently. "Hane, wake up! It's time to get going!"

Hane groaned, but her eyes flickered open sleepily. The snowy ground was awash with the purple light of twilight. In the distance, she could see the orange of the sun setting on the clouds above. She blinked a few times as her mind caught up with her.

Hige was the one who had shaken her awake. Toboe was rubbing his eyes close by while Kiba and Tsume stood, ready to go.

"Come on, let's go." Tsume said impatiently. "We've hung around here too long."

"I'm up, I'm up!" Hane said, disguising herself as a human once again as she stood.

Kiba looked forwards, at the dying light of the sun. "Let's go."

No one said anything else as Kiba led the way, singular purpose filling them once again. Hige fell into stride behind Kiba, followed by Tsume and Hane, and finally Toboe. As they ran, the sky darkened further, and was soon twinkling with stars.

"Wow!" Toboe breathed behind Hane.

The she-wolf dared a look over her shoulder. "What is it, kiddo?"

"It's just... I've never seen so many stars at once!" The pup exclaimed.

"Well, I guess that's what happens to city kids..." Hige said thoughtfully from ahead. "They never know what life's really like, out here."

"The pollution from the human cities fills up the air with nasty stuff that blocks out the sky." Hane explained. "Since it seems like we're in the middle of nowhere, it's rare that any sort of pollution can be found all the way out here."

"How do you know this stuff?" Tsume growled. "I mean, it's not important to us, so where'd you hear about it?"

"I often hung out near some labs back in Freeze City," Hane explained. "One time I overheard some scientists talking about it. It seemed like they wanted to fix it, and make the sky clear again."

"Well, _that's_ unlikely." Hige said. "I mean, look at how messed up the Earth is now? It's because of the humans and the Nobles it's this way, and there's no possibility of changing what happens."

Hane shrugged her shoulders. "Maybe it'll be possible someday. I wouldn't put it past them."

"But by then, we'll be in Paradise, won't we?" Toboe piped up worriedly. "I mean, it can't take that long for us to find it..."

"Dunno..." Hige replied, before turning his gaze forwards again. "Hey, Kiba! How long until we reach Paradise?"

"I don't know. But the scent of lunar flowers is getting stronger." Kiba responded, his feet pounding a steady rhythm on the snowy ground.

Hige took a deep sniff. "Oh, that's why I thought it smelled nicer..." Hige mused.

"Moron." Hane heard Tsume mutter from next to her, and she tried to suppress a grin.

"So, that means we're almost there, right?" Toboe panted, straining so that he was running on Hane's right.

"Hopefully." Hane said, turning her gaze upwards. The moon shone down upon the five of them, bathing their skin and hair in a silver luminescence. "At least the moon's out, though." She noted, feeling it strengthen her as she raced beneath it.

"Yeah, it feels kinda nice." Toboe agreed. "Is this what you were talking about, Kiba? About the moon making it easier to travel?"

"Yeah." Was Kiba's answer.

Hane sighed. "Well, he's certainly a wolf of few words."

"Who can blame him? After all, you three have been chattering non-stop since we started." Tsume said darkly.

Hane felt the now-familiar irritation rise up in her, and bit back her sharp words of reply. She took a deep breath to calm herself, and looked forwards. _What the hell's his problem, anyhow? He's always so... Angry._ She wondered, feeling the faintest curiosity rise up beneath her frustration.

It was true that, since they had begun this journey, Tsume had never said a kind word to any of them, much less anything remotely positive. But despite that, Hane felt a certain empathy, though she wasn't sure why. Perhaps it was because it seemed like he had had a bad past life, but the same had happened to Hane, and she wasn't a complete jerk.

A little taken aback at the direction her thoughts were going in, she focused herself on the crunches of her feet making contact with the snow beneath her. _Toboe's rubbing off on me. In a normal situation, I wouldn't ever try to make an excuse for why someone was cruel... But, maybe I'll ask Tsume about it sometime. When he's in a good mood._

But as she thought about it, Hane felt a wave of exasperation wash over her as she remembered that Tsume was never in a good mood. But, at the back of her mind, the questions continued to tease and linger.

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**Please review! I really want to know what people think of this fanfiction!**


	7. Chapter 7

**So, another long chapter so I'm seperating this episode into two chappies again. Enjoy!**

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**Near**_** the Railroad**_

Hane's ears flicked backwards at the sound of a train. The five wolves had been running alongside the railroad tracks for some time now, behind a large hill so that the passengers couldn't see them.

But now, the ground rose ever so slightly, and they were soon able to see the train. To Hane's relief, no one bothered to look out the window except a small girl with an orange scarf. The she-wolf grinned inwardly as her pale face transformed into a look of confusion and wonder for a split-second as she saw their true forms before she turned to talk to somebody. In the next instant, the ground dipped and they were once again hidden from sight.

_"Hey, did you see that girl?"_ Toboe said from the back of the pack.

_"Yeah."_ Hane replied cheerfully from where she kept pace with Tsume.

Toboe let out a small laugh. _"She seemed so... Surprised."_

_"Well, what do you expect?"_ Tsume growled. _"Wolves don't 'exist' anymore, according to humans. We should be more careful."_

_"Ah, come off it Tsume!"_ Hige said._ "She probably just thought we were dogs. And even if she did think we were wolves, do you think any adults would believe her?"_

Hane laughed._ "Hige's right, Tsume. You should really learn how to chill. After all, we've still got a long ways to go, you might as well be friendly."_

_"We're trying to find Paradise, not become friends."_ Tsume muttered angrily, but he left it at that.

Eventually, Hige and Toboe started complain that they were tired, and the pack stopped for a rest. Wary of being seen by humans again, they all cast their illusions. They settled down in the snow, Tsume laying on his back and closing his eyes in an uncaring manner while the rest of them just sat.

It eventually stopped snowing, and the sky turned a light blue. Hane let out a satisfied sigh as the sun warmed her skin.

"I had a dream that we reached Paradise." Toboe said suddenly, breaking everyone out of their thoughts. "Oh, it was so amazing! There were all these red and blue flowers as far as the eye could see... And you know what, they were all lunar flowers!"

"Have you ever seen a lunar flower before?" Hige asked disbelievingly, one amber eye watching him lazily.

Toboe seemed to deflate, glancing down at his hands. "Well, no not really..."

"Then how'd you know what lunar flowers look like?" Hane said.

Toboe shrugged indignantly. "I don't know... But Granny was there too! And she took care of us, and cooked for us, and made us all kinds of delicious food!"

Hane glanced at him, her greenish gold eyes curious. "No offense, kiddo, but I'd rather be out in the wild, in a nice forest with lots of food and my-" She stopped talking abruptly.

"Your what?" Toboe prompted, and all of a sudden, all their eyes were on her.

"Er, nothing!" She said suddenly, plastering a grin on her face. "My mouth just... Continued talking randomly, it happens."

Hige grinned. "Sometimes, I think you're the strangest out of all of us."

Hane scoffed. "Yeah, right. Anyways... Why would you want someone to cook for you in Paradise? Cooked meat is so... Tasteless."

"I guess he'll be happy being someone's pet even in Paradise." Tsume said, the contempt evident in his voice.

"It's not what you're thinking!" Toboe insisted. "It was like a party, and we were all treated like guests! And there was great music playing and everything!"

"Sounds like a city coffee shop to me." Hige sighed.

Toboe faltered for a moment. "But it's true, Hige. It was so amazing! It made think this was really Paradise! It's kinda... Hard to describe." He said finally, his gaze lowering.

"Well, with a brain like yours, whaddya expect?" Hige snorted.

Hane raised an eyebrow. "Like you're one to talk. Weren't you the one who said that your ideal Paradise would be filled with food and 'babes'?" She said, using quotation marks for the last word.

Hige looked away. "It's not unreasonable, is it?" He argued.

The she-wolf sighed. "Men. You're all the same."

"Give him a break." Toboe said. "Not even Kiba's told us what Paradise is like, so how are we supposed to know?!"

Kiba didn't say anything, but to Hane's disbelief, there was a small smile on his face.

"What color are lunar flowers anyway?" Toboe pleaded, gazing at him with innocent brown eyes. "Can you tell me that?"

Kiba just smiled again and shrugged his shoulders. Toboe sighed, but didn't say anything else on the matter. Eventually, the white wolf got up, and the others, seeing it was time to keep moving, followed suit.

Hane ran behind Kiba this time, followed by Tsume, Hige and Toboe. Soon enough, the sky turned a dark gray again, and small flakes began to fall.

"Ah, well. Guess it was too good to last." Hane sighed aloud.

"What?" Tsume asked.

She pointed upwards. "The weather."

His golden eyes flicked upwards, observing the cloudy sky for a moment then came back to rest on her face. "What are you hiding?"

Hane nearly halted mid-stride. "W-What?"

He glared at her. "The others may not have said anything, but you keep tripping up when you talk about Paradise. We don't know anything about you either. So, what are you hiding?"

"Nothing." _Liar._ And anyway, it's not as if we know anything about you, either! Or Hige, or Kiba!" Hane said, trying to keep her voice down.

Tsume let out a growl. "But you seem the most suspicious out of all of us."

Hane let out a sharp disbelieving laugh, drawing the attention of the others.

"Something wrong?" Kiba said, glancing backwards for a moment.

"It's nothing." Hane said airily.

Kiba stared at her for a moment longer before returning his gaze to the horizon.

"You know nothing of my life." Hane hissed under her breath. "Or what I've been through. You have no idea of what it's like, to lose..." She faltered, unable to continue. "So keep your arrogant nose out of my affairs, because I haven't tried messing around with yours." She snapped finally before catching up with Kiba.

Kiba glanced at her as she caught up, just a few strides behind him, and by his look she could tell he had heard. She looked down at the ground, counting the number of steps she took as she tried to stop her eyes burning from fury and grief.

_One, two, three, four - What the heck's his deal? There are five of us, and it's only Toboe who's explained what happened with his past- Seven, eight, nine - He wouldn't understand. None of them would.- Thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, seventeen- That's why I can't tell them. They wouldn't understand._

**_A few hours later_**

Soon, the five wolves were walking, and going against the wind as they made their way up the hill. The wind was stronger now, slapping small, stinging snowflakes into their faces.

As Hane crested the hill, followed by Tsume and Hige, her eyes widened in disbelief. Beneath them was the sea, gray and choppy, and the only signs of human civilization were the railroad tracks that led onto it for what seemed like forever, disappearing behind the fog.

Toboe, who had been lagging behind, finally caught up. "What is it?" He gasped.

"The ocean." Kiba replied, staring at the tracks that led beyond the horizon.

"I've never seen a body of water this big." Hane remarked coolly.

Kiba leapt down the cliff first, leaving paw prints on the snowy ledges as he descended. Hige went next, then Tsume, Hane and finally Toboe. None of them had much trouble, except at one point when Tsume went to fast.

He suddenly slipped on an unseen patch of ice, and his feet shot out from underneath him. But before he could fall and smash his body on the sharp rocks far, far below, Hane lunged forward and grabbed him by the back of his jacket.

She jerked him backwards, and the momentum made him crash into her, until she slammed into the stone wall behind her. Sandwiched between Tsume's back and the cliff, she let out a low growl before wriggling her way out.

Tsume looked surprised, maybe even a little shocked, but Hane didn't say anything, instead just glaring at him for a moment before leaping down to join the others. Tsume landed on the tracks soon after.

"Are you okay?" Toboe asked worriedly.

"I'm fine." Hane said tightly. "But twinkle-toes here might want to watch where he's going."

She heard Tsume let out an indignant noise, and only raised her head up higher. Hige smirked. "Didn't think you'd need the help of a girl to keep from falling, Tsume!" He said cheerfully.

Tsume scoffed. "I was doing fine."

"Sure you were." Hane said dryly before walking past him.

Toboe fell into step beside her. "Are you okay?" The pup asked. "You seem kind of... Tense."

Hane waved him off. "I'm fine, kiddo. But thanks for asking."

There was silence after that, the snow-filled air thick with tension. But as they strolled along the railroad tracks, something changed. It was faint at first, easily passed up as a figment of her imagination. But Hane took a deep whiff, and the scent pretty much smacked her in the face._ Lunar flowers..._

Out of the mist rose a city; a small speck in the distance, but Hane, with her keen eyesight, could already see it. Kiba stopped abruptly, causing the other wolves to come a halt as well.

"The scent is faint," Kiba said, staring ahead. "But it's lunar flowers all right."

"Guys, this is it!" Toboe said excitedly. "Paradise is right up ahead, I know it!"

He started running, reddish-brown hair whipping around in the howling wind. Hane raced after him, her own braid twisting all over the place. The sound of footsteps behind her told the she-wolf that the others were running as well.

Despite her initial suspicion, Hane felt a sudden surge of happiness and excitement well up in her as she followed Toboe, each step sending jolts of adrenalin through her body. _We're almost there, we're almost there!_ The words became a chant in her head that mirrored the beat of her strides.

But as they got closer, the smell of flowers began to be overpowered by the stench of garbage and filth. Hane wrinkled her nose, but didn't say anything. The scent of lunar blossoms had definitely come from the city.

The pack slowed down as they neared the city. "I'm guessing that trying to enter through the station would be a bad idea?" Hane said, glancing over at Kiba.

He nodded. "Yeah. Let's get off here."

He leapt off the side of the bridge, landing with a small thump on someone's roof top. He waved them down silently, and Hige jumped as well. Toboe went next, stumbling a little as he landed but was otherwise unharmed.

Hane glanced at Tsume for a split-second, and his golden eyes stared at hers. Ignoring the uncomfortable feeling in her chest, she jumped off the bridge. She landed softly, swiftly followed by Tsume.

"Down there seems like a good place to start." Hige said in hushed tones, jerking his head towards a fence down below.

Kiba tilted his head in assent and jumped off the side of the building. He landed lightly, followed by Hige. The beige wolf sniffed the air. "You smelled flowers, huh?" He said, opening his eyes. "Well, all I smell is the stench of some old, rancid oil."

Hane leapt down beside him. "But I smelled it too." She said. "When we were farther away from the city. Maybe the stink of this place is blocking the scent out."

Hige shrugged. "Maybe."

Toboe and Tsume jumped down simultaneously, the pup slipping and falling. Hane suppressed a chuckle. "Need a hand?" She said, pulling him up.

"Thanks, Hane." Toboe mumbled.

Noticing that Tsume was already walking away, the others followed. It wasn't long before he started handing out derogatory comments again. "Man, what a crappy city." He said in the same cool tone he used with everyone.

Glancing around, Hane saw people close their windows and pull the curtains over them. In an alleyway, some men ducked behind a wall, their clothes filthy and their faces wary. A sudden uneasiness began to fill her.

"Do you think they're all afraid of is?" Toboe asked, his brow creased with worry.

Hane felt a pang of sympathy for the pup. Growing up around humans, it must have been difficult for him to see such a negative response from an entire town.

"Maybe..." Hane said, shrugging her shoulders. "In any case, it's obvious that they don't get visitors often."

"What the hell are we supposed to find here anyway?" Tsume growled from the front. "This is some Paradise."

"We're obviously not there yet." Hane said, trying to keep the exasperation from her voice. "It wasn't even been a month since we've left Freeze City. If it was so easy to find, the humans would know about it."

Tsume glared at her, and she felt the familiar sinking feeling. _Why doesn't he trust me?_ She thought, slightly surprised to see how much it actually hurt her. "But the flower scent led us here, right? Well then, why can't we scent it anymore?"

"Like I said earlier," Hane said, her voice edgy. "It's probably because this city stinks so much. We'll find it, eventually."

The gray wolf let out a derisive snort, and Hane resisted the urge to snarl at him. Instead, she gritted her teeth and looked ahead, trying to seem as invested as possible in the stained walls of the building. The sun had almost set when they found some company.

A bunch of men were seated around a garbage can that was aflame, warming themselves. But when Toboe gasped, and Hane narrowed her eyes, she saw the wolves underneath their human forms.

"It's a woman." Hige said in astonishment, and following his gaze, Hane spotted a purple-haired beauty with dark gold eyes amongst the males.

"Yeah, so?" She said derisively. "It's not as if you've ever seen a female wolf before."

"Yeah, but... You're you!" Hige muttered.

Hane shot him a look. "What the hell is that supposed to mean?" She hissed.

But at that moment, one of the men stood up. Turning around to face them, Hane spotted the large scar he sported down one cheek and the tired, but fierce amber eyes. He was wearing a coat that was rather colorful compared to his companions; big with large horizontal bands of black and red.

Feeling Kiba stiffen beside her, Hane glanced at him. He was glaring openly at the wolf, his hostility evident._ It must be an alpha thing._ She thought.

"Where are you boys from?" The man asked, his voice deep. On second glance, he seemed to spot Hane. "And girl."

"A city to the north." Kiba said, deliberately keeping his answer vague.

"Why're you here?" The male said, filling his voice with fake curiosity.

"Just passin' through." It was Tsume who answered this time. "You don't expect us to do _business_ here, in a dump like this?" Hane noticed that he was glaring as well.

_Men._ She thought with a sigh, echoing her comment hours ago.

"Well then, where are you going?" The wolf asked harshly.

"Where are we going?" Hige echoed, obviously baffled by his aggression.

Hane felt herself bristle with indignation. _What is this?_ She thought furiously. _An interrogation of some kind?_

Someone's hand landed on her shoulder, and she glanced away in surprise to see that it was Tsume. His golden eyes warned her not to say anything, and she tried to relax, while ever-so-discreetly shrugging off his hand.

Unfortunately, Toboe didn't get the memo. "To Paradise!" He said, fixing the alpha of the opposing pack with his indignant stare.

The other wolves all started in unison, even the woman. Then the leader started chuckle, then laugh outright. The rest of his pack followed suit, cackling like maniacs as if what Toboe said was the funniest thing in the world.

"Kiba, why are they laughing?" Toboe asked in confusion.

"Because they obviously don't know anything about Paradise." His voice was cool, calm and collected; the same as always. But underneath it was angry contempt and Hane suddenly worried he would try to attack the other pack.

They stopped laughing abruptly. "We know all about it." The alpha growled in his deep, deep voice.

Hige and Toboe started in surprise, but Hane just narrowed her green-gold eyes. _What is he playing at?_

There was silence for a few heartbeats, and Hane felt Kiba stiffen even more. "It's nothing but a stupid legend." One of the others said finally, the first besides his alpha to speak. He was short and stocky, with purplish hair, beady eyes and an orange cap. Hane instantly disliked him.

"Legend?" Toboe said, his voice quavering ever-so-slightly.

"That's right kid, there's no such thing as Paradise." The guy said, smirking.

"What makes you say that?" Kiba said, the barely disguised undercurrent of contempt in his voice.

The beady-eyed man stared at him, still smirking. "Maybe because we've been there. We've all seen it."

Hige and Toboe let out identical noises of surprise, and even Hane and Kiba's eyes widened in disbelief.

"And I'm telling ya, it wasn't Paradise." The man continued, obviously enjoying the effect he was having on them. "That place was more like Hell."

"You would certainly know." Hane said wryly, unable to keep silent any longer.

The man's lips curled in a snarl. "What'd you say?!"

Hane shrugged innocently. "Nothing, nothing at all."

"You'll all find out soon enough." The alpha said, his voice somber. "You'll see that Paradise isn't worth looking for. Now why don't you all just get lost. You do have somewhere where you belong, don't you?"

"Unless your _friend_ there wants to stay." One of the wolves said, leering at Hane. "We'd very much enjoy her company."

"Hey, back off!" Hige shot at them.

Only the alpha and the female said nothing as the others burst into laughter and catcalls. Hane started burning with indignation and rage, barely noticing it when Tsume walked away, and Hige pulled her along. Kiba stood stock still, his eyes also narrowed with fury.

"Kiba? Kiba, let's go." Toboe pleaded, tugging on his arm. "I don't wanna hang around here."

The white wolf allowed himself to be pulled along, and none of them looked back as they left. Except, Hane spotted Hige turn for a second, and glance out of the corner of his eye at the sad woman, the one who never said anything.

**_Some time later..._**

Hane was still trembling with rage, even after they had left that pack of wolves far behind. Taking a deep breath, she tried to calm herself.

"Well, you certainly took that badly." Tsume remarked coldly.

She bared her teeth in a grim smile. "Oh, trust me. If I had taken that badly, those idiots would be bleeding on the floor."

Toboe looked up at her, his face anxious. "You wouldn't r_eally_, do that, would you?"

_You'd be surprised how offended I get when a male tries to tell me to 'hang around'._ She thought inwardly, but only sighed and ruffled his hair.

"What a damn joke." Tsume snarled suddenly. "A bunch of down and out losers just gave me the brush off."

"Yeah, right, you're not exactly one to talk, y'know." Hige said.

"What d'you say?!" Tsume snapped, turning around to face him.

Hige put his hands up to ward off attack, a sheepish look on his face. "It's just," He said quickly. "In a couple of years, we could be just like those guys!"

"Like hell." Hane said indifferently. "We'd never sink to their level. Even Tsume wouldn't want to that pathetic."

Tsume turned again, looking as if he was ready to murder her, but Toboe's quiet voice interrupted their glaring contest. "This city is scary." He said, his voice soft. "It doesn't feel right. There may be a lot of wolves that live around here, but this place is really cold."

Hane sighed. "If any city feels right for a wolf, then the world should come to an end. We live in the wild, remember? And anyways, like you said, it's always either too cold or too hot in this world."

"Well maybe they're right." Tsume countered. "The sooner we get out of here, the better off we'll be."

"And where do you think we should go, exactly." The others turned in surprise to see that it was Kiba had spoken. Ever since they had left the pack behind, the white wolf had been completely silent. "There has to be something here. Look how many wolves are in this city. I think we should stay and find out."

Hane let out yet another sigh. "Fine, fine. Whatever. But if we don't find anything, we leave this crummy place, m'kay?"

Toboe and Hige shrugged their agreement as well, but Tsume just turned and kept walking. The others hesitated, looking to Kiba for permission, but Hane just strolled along. She turned her face up to the sky, watching as the orange faded into blue.

The pack kept wandering about, seemingly aimless until Toboe finally decided that they should sit down. "Can we stop, please?" The pup pleaded.

The rest of them stopped and turned towards him. Hane raised an eyebrow. "What, you tired already?"

Toboe shot her an irritated look. "Maybe..."

"Alright then, let's stop for a moment, guys!" She said cheerfully before plopping down on the cement, her legs dangling over the edge.

Toboe settled down with a sigh on her left. Hige did the same, although his action was more a collapse. On the farthest end, Kiba sat with considerably more grace, and leaned back on one hand so he could look at the sky.

Tsume stood impatiently for a few moments, obviously waiting for them to stand so they could get moving again. But eventually, he saw that they weren't going to budge, and let out a small growl of irritation.

Then, much to Hane's surprise, he sat down on her right, but she guessed that was because he was more irritated with Kiba than her at the moment. She cast him a cautious glance out of the corner of her eye, but he was staring fixedly at the gray ocean crashing against the rocks below.

"You'll want to be careful, or people might think you trust me." She said lightly, but underneath it was the faintest hint of resentment. Tsume shot her an angry look, while Hige and Toboe peered at her curiously.

"What?" Toboe said, confused.

"Noooothing!" Hane trilled. "Just saying that I don't think those guys trust us."

Hige and Toboe paused for a moment, obviously trying to process what they had heard her say earlier, and what she as saying now. Deciding that they must have misheard, Hige shrugged his shoulders, and scoffed. "You don't say. They told us to get out of here as soon as we could."

"Well, they're definitely gonna be disappointed." Hane said, a smirk on her face.

None of them said anything more for a quite a while, watching silently as the sun finally disappeared behind the horizon, and the moon appeared in the sky. Lifting her face upwards, Hane let it bathe her skin with its soothing glow. She could even ignore Tsume, who she could sense was as taut as a whipcord next to her.

Then, out of the blue, a large growling sound filled the air. But not the aggressive kind. Hane opened one green-gold eye lazily and glanced at Hige.

"Who was that?" The beige wolf said indifferently. When Toboe and Kiba both gave him slightly irritated looks, he laughed. "Oh, hehe, it's me."

Another long, low growl of hunger filled the air, and the pack all looked with identical looks of surprise at Tsume. At his annoyed expression, Hane grinned, and Hige let out another chuckle. "But it was Tsume that time!"

He let out an irritated snort and turned his gaze away, which just made Hane laugh. As Tsume shot her a golden-eyed glare, Hige looked upwards at the sky. "How do those guys live here with nothing to eat?" He complained. "Standin' around a bunch of old trash all day doing nothing!"

Hane's smile faded slightly as she realized that she was starving as well. "They have to get food from somewhere..."

"I can't walk another step." Toboe said suddenly.

Hane gave him a questioning look. "We've been resting for quite a while..."

"But we haven't exactly been sleeping," Hige argued. "And the hunger's just making us more exhausted. I say we find a place to sleep."

Hane shrugged. "Whatever." She said, just as Tsume got up and started walking away. Taking that as her cue, she stood up stiffly as well, her muscles creaking in protest and set off after him.

"Where the hell are you guys going?" Hige said.

"To look for a place to sleep." Hane responded, shooting him a grin over her shoulder. "You coming?"

Kiba stood too, and shoved his hands into his pockets as he started walking. Toboe got up as well, jogging slightly so he could catch up with her.

"Aw, wait up!" Hige complained before leaping to his feet and running after them.

* * *

**Review, please!**


	8. Chapter 8

**Well, here's part two! And you get a lot more info on Hane's past... Like, a lot. I think I've been hinting at it enough, but I wanna know if you guys actually managed to guess...**

* * *

_City Graveyard_

Soon enough, the five wolves wandered to what appeared to be the city graveyard. They lingered at the entrance, eyeing the dark, snow-covered gravestones warily.

"This'll be a good place to sleep." Tsume said sarcastically, but by the way he kept slouching, Hane guessed that he didn't really give a damn.

"Ugh, well it looks like we can forget food." Hige said.

Toboe shivered. "This place is giving me the willies."

Hane grinned. "There's nothing to be scared of. After all, it is just a bunch of dead people buried in the ground!" She teased, but she felt as edgy as the others. At Toboe's exasperated and slightly scared look, she ruffled his hair affectionately.

They started walking through the graveyard, their shoes making soft crunching sounds as they came into contact with the snow beneath her feet. Hane was at the rear, walking just a little bit slower than the others. She paused for a moment, and walked over to one of the gravestones.

She knelt beside it and, paying no attention to the cold snow making her knees wet, she carefully read the inscription.

_Sumoru Tokuda_

_Aged 6 years old_

_A loving daughter and sister_

She felt her heart lurch in her chest as she finished, and lifted her hand to rest it against the faded words. "I'm sorry." She murmured, too low for the others to hear. "So sorry." Just the sight made her sigh and think of the poor family that had been left behind. How it must have hurt the mother... _Trust me, I know._ Her hand still resting against the freezing stone, she was about to heave herself up, but she noticed something at the base.

Carefully, she reached down and brushed the snow away. Her fingers touched something crinkly and slightly damp. She carefully grasped it in her fingers and pulled it up to her face so she could inspect it more closely.

It was some sort of blossom, old and nearly entirely rotten. It was impossible to tell what it's true color had been when the plant had been alive. Even as she examined it, a few of the many browning petals flew off in the faintest of breezes, carried from her sight. But, despite how unrecognizable it appeared... Hane lifted the handful of dead petals up to her nose and sniffed deeply.

At first, there was nothing to smell but the scent of mold and death, but then, there was the faintest whiff of... Something. But it was familiar, that was for sure.

"Hane!" The she-wolf's head jerked upwards, startled, at the sound of her name. Toboe was waiting for her, his forehead creased in confusion. "What are you doing? The others are way ahead!"

Beyond him, Hane could see Tsume, his golden eyes burning as he stared at her. She felt a tremor run through her, a mix of uncertainty, anger and... Something else that she couldn't quite put her finger on. She lowered her gaze, unable to stand his demanding, wary stare any longer.

Carefully, she curled her fingers around the dead blossom and put it in the pocket of her leather jacket. "Coming." She called out as she stood and walked towards him. She paused only once, to send another sad glance at the dark gravestone.

"Who's buried there?" Toboe asked, noting her expression immediately.

Hane kept her eyes fixed on the others in front of her, and shrugged. "A girl." She said.

"Oh." For a second, Toboe's face fell, and Hane rested her hand on his shoulder.

Soon enough, they caught up with the others. It was only then that Hane could see how vast the graveyard was, stretching so far that it disappeared around the bend of the island. But despite that, there was not the smallest hint of life anywhere. The ground was barren and black in the places where it wasn't patched with snow, and some of the twisted trees that would have shaded the gravestones had there been any sun were black and leafless.

Tsume led the way once again, with Toboe and Hane following and Hige and Kiba bringing up the rear. They were still looking around for a relatively sheltered place to sleep when Toboe shivered.

"Guys?" He said. "I keep hearing something weird."

Now that she thought about it, Hane could hear faint scratching sounds disturbing the silence. And they were getting louder.

"Dammit, would you stop being afraid of everything!" Tsume said irritably, but Hane could tell that he was tense as well.

Then, all of a sudden, something just emerged from a hole in the ground in front of them. Toboe and Hige let out yells of panic before falling backwards. Hane was considerably more calm about it, but she still couldn't help the gasp of surprise that escaped her lips.

But once she had gotten a hold of herself, she could see a wolf, a really, really old one peering at them with tired eyes. His fur was a light brown, not to mention tangled and matted. Hane felt a momentary surge of pity before the wolf set his disguise in place.

"Hey gramps, what're you doing!" Hige said indignantly, trying to cover up his near-heart attack. "You scared the crap outta us!"

The old man looked at them, his eyes widening. "Oh." He said. "I was only digging a hole for myself."

"A hole for yourself?" Hige repeated.

"Why?" Hane asked curiously.

Kiba was the one to answer her question. "Are you saying you're digging a grave?"

"Well, when you get to my age, you begin to recognize when your time is coming." The old man said, shrugging his shoulders.

"You might want to dig a little faster then." Tsume said coldly.

"Tsume!" Hane snapped.

He glanced at her, his golden eyes as cold as his voice had been. "What? It's true."

"I thought I was a goner too!" Toboe interrupted sheepishly, obviously recognizing that they were about to start fighting again.

"Excuse me," Kiba said to the old man. "But do you know of any lunar flowers in this city?"

Hane felt herself stiffen ever so slightly, and her hand snaked into her pocket to brush against the dead blossom she had picked up. _A lunar flower, maybe?_

The old man let out a startled "Oh!" of realization. He spread his arms out. "The flower bed that went on forever!"

Hane's gold-green eyes widened. So, she had been right, then. Beside her, Kiba let out a startled noise as he came to the same conclusion.

"Kiba, do you think...?" Hane asked tentatively.

The white wolf glanced at her and nodded in agreement. "Long, long ago," The old man continued, oblivious to their reactions, "They bloomed all over this island... But then, one day they were all dug up and now there isn't a single petal left."

Hane's fingers brushed against the flower in her pocket again. _Maybe not all of them, old man._

"A long time ago, huh?" Hige said.

Toboe brightened suddenly. "Hey, could you tell us what color they were?"

Hane smiled slightly at his enthusiasm. It was typical of him to ask a question like that. "What color?" The old man pondered the question for a heartbeat before grinning widely as he remembered. "Well, let's see... The color of the moon!" He exclaimed, pointing upwards.

"And what about Paradise, have you been there?" Tsume asked suddenly, the faintest undercurrent of mockery in his tone.

"Oh, every wolf goes in search of it," The old man said, oblivious to his sarcasm. "I myself tried to find it once..."

"Did you?" Hane asked.

The man was silent for a moment before crawling out of his hole. "Does it look like it?" He said sadly before tottering away.

Hane broke into a trot until she was besides him, ready to help if he should fall. The old man noticed what she was doing and let out a raspy chuckle. "My dear, if I was incapable of walking around on my own, I would already be in my hole."

"Don't say that!" Hane argued. Despite herself, she was already getting attached to the old man.

The old man let out another coughing laugh. "Everyone's time must come eventually."

"Yes, but..." Hane's voice trailed off. "If you need any help, just tell me."

The old man glanced at her, observing her for a moment. "You act so much like a mother."

Hane choked on air and stumbled over her feet at his words. It was only once she had regained her balance that she started speaking again. _How did he even... "_What makes you say that?" She asked, her voice sounding tinny and distant to her ears.

The old man shrugged, his hands clasped behind his back. "Your eyes. Back in my day, when there were more females in the pack, they would always have the same protective fierceness within then when looking at their pups."

Hane didn't know if the others had heard, but she had the uncomfortable feeling they were all staring at her. And one pair of bright golden eyes in particular. She shook her head. "Nope. Maybe it's just a female thing."

"Hm." The old man didn't say anything else, but he gave her a look that made her think he knew what he was talking about.

Soon, a strange, disgusting scent started to pervade the air. Hane put her hand over her nose and mouth, and started taking shallow breaths. She was about to ask what the nasty stench was, but the old man stopped suddenly.

"Look!" He said, gesturing. "That's the entrance over there!"

Hane peered at it curiously. It was a sort of hill, with a small arch in it. Most of the 'entrance' was blocked off by wooden boards, but a few had been ripped off, revealing a yawning hole. A sign was hung from it, the writing too faded for even Hane to make out in the dim light. She also noted, with a fair amount of dismay, that this was where the scent was coming from.

"Ugh, that reeks!" Hige complained, bringing his arm up to cover his nose. "Smells like death warmed over!"

"You could say that again." Hane agreed, fighting the urge to be sick.

Toboe stared at it dejectedly. "I was kinda hoping it would be a nicer place..."

"Maybe inside...?" Hane suggested, her voice trailing off. The hole was giving her a bad vibe, and she felt the sudden urge to get away from this place.

Seemingly oblivious to the stink, and the complaints of the others, Kiba walked towards it, his blue eyes wide and staring.

"I wouldn't." The old wolf said as Kiba passed him. The white wolf paused for a moment. "There have been many young wolves that have set out through there... But sadly enough not one of them ever reached Paradise."

"What do you mean?" Hane asked, her voice muffled. "They came back?"

The old man lifted his head, and the she-wolf was struck by how sad his eyes were. "Not all of them. All that's left for the ones who returned is to seek out a living here. Just like the rest of us."

There was the sudden sound of snow crunching underfoot and the five wolves turned simultaneously. "Okay, old man." The alpha said wearily. "I think you should call it a day. Don't forget there's work to do tomorrow."

"Work?" Hane muttered. "Who would wanna work here, anyway?"

"I see," The old man said, walking towards the alpha. "Well, I've dug it deep enough." Hane felt a sharp pang as she realized the old man was talking about his hole... His grave.

"Wait a minute." Kiba said, his voice sharp. "When you and your pack tried to get to Paradise, is this the path you took?"

"I thought I told you it doesn't exist." The alpha replied sharply.

"Zali..." The old man said.

The alpha glanced at him, his brow furrowed, before turning back towards the five wolves. "If you kids disrupt the peace of this pack in any way, I'll show you no mercy." He growled. "Now get outta town before dawn, is that clear?"

None of them responded. Hane felt herself bristle with indignation, but forced herself to stay calm. The guy was a jerk, it was true, but it wouldn't do them any good if they got into a fight. Seemingly satisfied that he had gotten the message across, Zali turned, his hand on the old man's shoulder and walked away.

Hane and the others gazed after him for a while until they had disappeared from sight. With a sigh, Hane stretched her arms. "So hows about we find that place to sleep?"

_**Some time later, in the graveyard...**_

The pack eventually found an abandoned, one story building whose roof had caved in not far from the entrance to Paradise. Or whatever it was. But at least the place wasn't filled with snow. Hane was sitting next to Toboe, her jacket wrapped tightly around her body as they tried to retain some warmth. Kiba stood at the collapsed doorway, staring at the entrance.

"So tell me, d'you still believe in it?" Tsume growled from where he sat.

The white wolf turned, his gaze slightly curious. "Believe in what?"

"Paradise." Tsume said. "There's no such place."

"That's what those guys said." Hane said fiercely. "Maybe that isn't the actual way to Paradise. They're just bitter, Tsume. It doesn't mean we have to give up."

Tsume snorted and looked at her out from the corner of his eye. "Are you kidding me? They said they'd been there, and apparently it was no Paradise."

"Well, maybe what they found wasn't the real Paradise." Kiba said shortly.

Tsume let out a short, barking laugh. "Where the hell does all that confidence come from?" When Kiba didn't reply, he continued. "Anyway, you know it's hopeless. There's absolutely no guarantee we'll reach it either. We'd be stupid to keep going!"

"Don't say that!" Toboe protested. "Besides, getting angry just makes you hungrier..."

Tsume leaned back until he was lying down and replied matter-of-factly, "Maybe we should just hang around here until we die in the gutter. Start diggin' some holes like that old man."

"Way to be the optimist, Tsume." Hane growled.

"What part of this entire situation is optimistic?!" Tsume retorted.

All of a sudden, Kiba interrupted. "It's not confidence." The four others turned their stares towards him. "I'm not really sure what it is." He added. "But it's always there, screaming inside of me. I just have to know. I have to get there, that's why I've kept running all this time. I can't imagine... Living without believing in it."

Hane stared at him, shocked. It was probably the longest speech the she-wolf had ever heard Kiba utter since she had met him. The strange silence was broken, however, when Hige sniffed deeply. His eyes opened and he jumped into a sitting position.

From behind one of the collapsed walls, the woman with the purple hair from before appeared. Unlike the last time they had seen her, she seemed... Brighter. More cheerful. "You guys must be starving by now!" She said, her strange accent reminding her of the people that came from the far west, next to the big islands on the coast*.

At her words, Hige started nodding vigorously, his eyes sparkling. "Yes, yes, we are, we are!" He yipped. "It's very kind of you to notice!"

Hane watched with disgust as Hige pretty much crawled towards her. Then again, the woman probably was a combination of what he loved most; she was a female wolf, and obviously about to offer them something to eat.

But Kiba started walking away, out into the graveyard as Hige went through the bag the woman had brought. Toboe shot up. "W-Wait, Kiba!"

"Ah, just let him go." Hige said, oblivious as Toboe ran off. "Thanks, this is really great!"

The woman smiled kindly and looked at them. "What about you two, aren't you gonna eat?"

"No thanks." Hane said abruptly before standing.

"Aw, come on!" Hige said, his mouth full of bread. "Lighten up and dig in already, won't ya? I mean, let's face it guys, we don't know when our next meals gonna be-"

"Weren't you listening back there?" Tsume said harshly. "Our little trip is over!"

"H-huh?" For a moment, Hige looked like a kicked puppy, and Hane felt bad for him.

"We don't have a destination." Tsume continued, his voice rough with anger. "It's finished."

Hane felt as if someone had just kicked her in the gut. Was he right? Was this really as far as they could get?

Hige let out a 'hmph'. "Well, what do you think?" He said, and for a moment, Hane thought he was talking to her. But obviously, he was addressing the woman. "Uh, miss uh..."

She smiled. "My name is Cole."

Hige pondered this for a moment before grinning. "Cole, huh?"

Tsume made a disgusted noise. "Maybe you boys should think about staying around for a little while." Cole said cheerfully.

Hane felt a stab of irritation._ I'm here too, you know!_ She thought furiously.

Hige, on the other paw, smiled widely. "Well, that's tempting, isn't it!"

Tsume stood abruptly, and headed for the doorway. Hane made a move to follow him, only pausing when Toboe came running.

"Guys!" He panted. "Kiba went off by himself!"

He stopped when the gray wolf walked past him. "Tsume... Wait, what's the matter?!"

"This isn't worth my time." Tsume growled angrily.

"Now Tsume's left!"

"Don't worry." Hane said. "Stay here with Hige and Cole. I'll go after Tsume."

Toboe let out a small noise, but nodded the okay. She ruffled his hair as she walked past him. "Stay outta trouble, kiddo. I'll be back soon."

She ran after Tsume, a determination sparking up within her. _This'll be a good chance to explain to him... Maybe not everything, but enough so he can trust me. If we continue being as divided as we are, it won't be a surprise if we never reach Paradise._

Tsume was already out of the graveyard once Hane caught up with him. She slowed down to a walk, just managing to stay fast enough so she was keeping up. "Do you always have to be an ass to everyone? This is so stupid, we should go back!"

"Then go!" Tsume retorted.

"Not without you!" Hane snapped. She stepped in front of him, and he stopped. "Look, I get that you don't trust me. It's understandable. I get that you're pissed off because it seems like a dead end. I understand, okay? But that doesn't mean we give up. It doesn't mean we stop trying. And it certainly doesn't give you an excuse to act like a jerk!"

He eyed her angrily. "Why do you care, anyway?"

Hane blinked. "What?"

"Why do you give a damn that I act like a jerk!?" He shot back, irritated.

She let out a harsh laugh. "Oh, _I_ don't care. But Toboe does. He looks up to you, and you shoot him down. I'm surprised he still tries to be your friend."

Tsume scoffed, but his gaze dropped from her fierce gold-green eyes for the briefest of moments. But, of course, Tsume being Tsume, he had to keep at it. "It doesn't matter. Paradise doesn't exist. This was a wasted journey." He said bitterly.

Hane sighed, and stepped back. He started walking again, and she fell into step beside him. "I don't think that's the way to Paradise." She said. "And what those guys are saying... About it not being Paradise... Then, you know. It can't be Paradise."

"So it doesn't exist." Tsume said darkly.

"I don't believe that!" She said fiercely. "We can't have come this far for nothing. I trust Kiba; he says he can take us there, to the proper Paradise, and I believe him."

"Then you're just as stupid as the others." He growled.

She raised an eyebrow. "Stupid for believing?"

"Yeah."

Hane didn't say anything for a moment, pushing her anger down and stared at him. "What happened to you to make you so bitter?"

Tsume didn't respond, and Hane had just about given up hope about getting an answer when he replied. "Life. That's what happened to me."

She cocked her head. "Life doesn't make someone a horrible person."

He barked out a laugh. "So that's what I am, huh? A horrible person."

"I don't think so." Hane replied, a bit surprised by how they had managed to say more than two sentences without actually fighting. "To be honest, I think Toboe's rubbing off on me. I don't think you're a bad person, but you want us to think that."

"Then, why?" The sarcasm in Tsume's voice was still there, but it was less pronounced now. "Why do I want you guys to think I'm a bad person?"

Hane shrugged. "Maybe because you think you are. And you believe the whole world needs to agree with you. Something really bad must have happened to you..."

"Whatever." Tsume snapped, but there was a defensive edge to his tone. "What about you?"

Hane smirked. "I only act like a jerk to you, and that's 'cuz you piss me off."

She wasn't sure, but she thought she saw the smallest quirk of his lips, but in a heartbeat, his expression was as stony as ever. "What happened to your pack?"

She glanced at him. For the first time when someone asked about her pack, she didn't feel sudden panic. "Do you want the long version or the short?"

Tsume shrugged.

Hane sighed. "Good grief, I can't believe I'm doing this. But if this'll make you trust me, then..."

"I never said it would make me trust you." Tsume interrupted sharply.

She grinned. "But it seems to be a large part of the problem. So, fine. I'll pour all of my secrets out." Her smile faded. "Just... Don't tell the others. I'm not asking you to promise. I'm saying that if you tell, I'll rip your head off."

"Fair enough." Tsume said coldly.

"Alright then. Glad we got that cleared up." Hane said. The more she thought about the situation, the less enthusiastic she began to feel about it. "I lived with a relatively large pack, I guess. My parents were the alphas. I had a mate, Chie. And pups."

At her last words, Tsume started. She smiled bitterly. "Their names were Juko and Ashi. I was happy, you know? I'd heard of Paradise, of course, but I liked my life. We lived in the mountains; there was water, trees, prey, plenty of shelter... And no humans.

"So, of course, why the hell would I want to go to Paradise?" She continued. Hane knew that she had his full attention now, but she didn't look at him. "Everything was great. But then, these soldiers came. We were wary, of course, but at first they didn't hurt us, so we didn't think we had anything to worry about. Then they killed one of us, a close friend of mine. And then another. We were preparing to leave when they attacked our dens."

Hane took in a shuddering breath. "I wanted to stay and fight, but Chie and my parents made me leave with the pups. So I ran, as fast as I could with Ashi and Juko. Once I thought we were safe, I hid them and went back. Everyone was already dead."

She tried to keep her voice even, she really did. "I knew it wasn't safe anymore, so I tried to get back to my kids as fast as I could. But I was too late; the soldiers got there first. They were grasping them by the scruffs of their necks, obviously waiting for me to arrive. They shot my hind legs so I wasn't able to do anything. And then..."

Her voice trailed off. "And then they killed them. In front of my eyes. Do you know what that does to a mother? They dropped them on the floor, like rags. And they just... Left. I think they expected me to die. I wish I had, that day. But I didn't. I dragged myself over to their dead bodies, and cradled them, and wished to die. I didn't eat, barely slept, nor drink when it rained. But I didn't die. So, once my wounds healed, I buried them all. And then I left. Found my way to Freeze City after months in barren lands."

She managed to regain some composure. "I thought I could forget. I almost did, and then I met you guys. And despite everything, I thought Paradise meant that I would be happy again. So, I hopped on for the ride."

Hane fell silent, trying to blink back the tears burning in her eyes. This had been a bad idea. She shouldn't have said anything. Now her mental wounds were bleeding again. Tsume still hadn't said a word. She peered at him through lowered, trembling lashes. He was staring down at the ground, and for once, she couldn't read his golden eyes.

"So, do you trust me yet?" She said, letting out a shaky, bitter laugh.

Tsume looked up, and stared at her. He paused, and ended up shrugging. Hane smiled wanly. "Well, that's a little bit better, I guess. But just to set the record straight, I don't like to be reminded of what happened. So, if you want to ask something about it, you'd better do it in the next twelve hours."

They walked in silence for about a minute when Tsume said something completely surprising. "Sorry."

Hane stared at him, incredulous. "Wait, what?"

Tsume glared at her. "I already said it once. But, for what happened to you. Sorry."

Hane managed to smirk. "Wow. I think that's the nicest thing you've said to anybody. But the nicest thing you _did_ was probably try to stop me and Toboe from running after that crazy machine. Remember that?"

Tsume snorted, his sarcasm back and fully functional. "Obviously."

"Well, of course you would remember, since you were running away most of the time." She teased.

"I was not." Tsume retorted. "And anyway, I wasn't the one who had to be dug out from snow because they couldn't tell when an avalanche was headed their way."

"Hey!" Hane said indignantly. "I was saving all of your lives!"

"Or you could just admit you made a mistake!" Tsume snapped.

"That will _never_ happen!" Hane said.

Tsume raised an eyebrow. "You'd be surprised."

She sighed. "You're so annoying sometimes, you know that?"

"I thought I was a jerk." Tsume said sarcastically.

"That too. You know, in fact I think you're all around negative." Hane said.

Tsume shrugged. "Maybe I just like being that way, like you said."

Hane was quiet for a heartbeat. "What happened to you, then?" She said finally.

Tsume glanced at her, his eyes narrowing. "What do you mean?"

"You obviously had a life before Freeze City." Hane argued. "I just spilled my life story to a jerk like you, just so you could trust me. The least you could do is tell me what happened to you."

His golden eyes slid away from hers and focused on the road ahead, his body tense. When he didn't say anything, Hane felt a flash of irritation. "Fine." She muttered. "Be that way."

Admittedly, the atmosphere between them before had been tense, but now there was anger mixed into it to, and suspicion, though it was on Hane's part for a change. They walked on in silence.

"Let's find a place to sleep." Tsume finally said gruffly.

Hane shrugged her shoulders. "Whatever."

They wandered towards the station, where the train stopped. It was huge and empty, but it was considerably more warm than outside. "Do you think we're allowed to be in here?" Hane asked, her voice hushed.

Tsume shrugged in response. "Who cares anyway?"

"The pack of wolves who live here!" She hissed angrily.

Tsume pretty much threw himself onto one of the extremely long benches, and let out a sigh. "I'm really tired. What do you say we rest here?"

Hane sighed. "Yeah, sure. My paws are about to fall off anyway."

Tsume lay down, his feet a few inches from the edge, and crossed his hands behind his head. Hane didn't sit at first, glancing about warily. "Hopefully the others will wait for us at morning." She muttered under her breath.

A long, but faint howl reached her ears. Hane twitched, and turned towards the sound. "Toboe."

Tsume groaned, irritated. "What does he want?"

"He just wants to make sure we're okay." Hane said. She changed into her wolf form and sat back on her haunches. Lifting her head, she howled back an answer. After a few more exchanges, Hane learned that Cole had left, Kiba wasn't back yet, but Hige was still with Toboe. She informed the pup that they were staying at the station.

To her surprise, Toboe replied that they would head over there at morning, since Cole had suggested they go. Something to do with food.

After howling a warning to be careful, Hane recast her human illusion, suddenly standing on two legs again.

She laid down on the bench with a relieved sigh, her aching muscles relaxing. She did the same as Tsume, putting her hands behind her head, but after a few minutes of shifting uncomfortably, she sat up again.

She stripped off her leather jacket and bunched it into a makeshift cushion before tapping Tsume on the forehead. "Lift your big head, will ya?"

The gray wolf let out a fierce growl, but did as he was told. Hane propped the big jacket beneath his head and rested hers to. She normally wouldn't have done something like that, especially for an asshole like Tsume, but the she-wolf knew from experience that the leather jacket was big enough when bunched up that it would dig uncomfortably into her shoulder blades. So naturally, an easy solution was to share it.

Hane laid down again, her head resting comfortably on her jacket before closing her eyes. Almost automatically, she rolled onto her side, her back pressed against the bench, and curled up. Before she knew it, she was sleeping.

_**The Next Morning**_

When Hane's green-gold eyes blinked open again sleepily, she saw Toboe and Hige standing close by and a loud, female voice coming through the speakers situated throughout the station.

Hane sat up, and next to her, Tsume's golden eyes opened as well. She pulled her jacket out from under his head, feeling her face burn slightly at Toboe's delighted expression.

"So, what's the deal?" Hane said abruptly.

"Word is they'll give us some food." Hige said, glancing around.

Hane's eyebrow raised. "Really? You believe them?"

"I believe Cole is a trustworthy person, yeah." Hige defended himself.

Tsume straightened and said, his voice a little slurred, "What about-"

"Kiba, you mean?" Hige interrupted. "I dunno. He never did come back."

"I'm sure he's okay..." Hane said as she pulled her leather jacket on, but she was doubting it herself.

The four wolves got up and walked to the rail overlooking a stone ramp and the place where the train stopped. They all froze as they saw Zali hand some human dog leashes that were holding his pack.

"What are they doing?" Hige said, horrified.

"I don't like this..." Hane muttered as she watched.

The handler led the dogs over to some kind of harness and attached them. They were all filthy, and obvious exhausted. Hane let out a gasp as she spotted the old man from the previous evening, the one who had shown them the path to 'Paradise'. It looked as if they were pulling a cart full of some sort of stone.

The handler suddenly drew out a whip from his jacket and used it. The sound it made was a sharp crack, and the wolves were goaded into moving. They slowly, slowly, made their way up the ramp, their muscles straining underneath their matted fur.

Tsume let out a sudden gasp of surprise, and Hane's gaze shot to her left. Zali was there, looking over his pack with a cool expression on his face. "What the hell is going on down there?!" Tsume snarled, pointing. Zali just glanced at him.

Below, the handler lifted his hand. "Alright, hold it there, rest the dogs!"

Most of the wolves sat down, panting heavily while another human walked towards them, a bucket in his hand. He threw the contents of it towards them, revealing scraps of meat. In a frenzy, the wolves leapt upon the food, snapping at each other angrily as they tried to eat as much as they could.

"Start talking, mister!" Tsume warned, his hands clenched so tightly they were shaking with rage.

"The train makes a quick stop," Zali explained. "It gives the humans and us a chance to eat."

Hane made a disgusted sound. "What kind of life do you live?!" She hissed. "How could you..."

"It's the only way we can make a living out here." Zali said calmly. "We work for them and they feed us."

"Scratching each other's backs." Hige said in realization. "Just like you, Tsume, you used to do the same thing-"

"I may have used them, but I was never used by them!" Tsume shouted, enraged.

"Your opinion doesn't change a damn thing." Zali replied coldly.

Below, Hane spotted the old man starting to limp badly. He started faltering in his steps, and Toboe let out a gasp. "Gramps is in serious trouble!" Hige said.

Then, the old wolf collapsed and Hane was over the rail in a heartbeat. Without a second's thought she cast off her illusion and raced to her fallen brethren. "Hane!" She heard Toboe yell distantly, but she ignored him. This kind old man needed help.

The handler raised his whip, intending to strike the wolf until he stood again, but Hane was there first. She barely flinched as the sharp leather cut into her shoulders, staining her dark brown fur bright red. She peeled back her lips and snarled savagely, standing over the old man to protect him.

"We've got a stray dog!" She heard a human yell. At first, she thought he was talking about her, but her gold-green eyes flashed over to a blur of white coming up the ramp. _Kiba._

The whip bit into her again, this time her muzzle. She let out a roar of rage and leapt at the handler, knocking him down. She opened her jaws, ready to tear the human's miserable throat out, when something barged into her. She was knocked off her paws, and landed roughly on the cement.

Then, people were holding her down, humans and wolves alike. She snapped and snarled, but someone grabbed her muzzle and shoved it into the stone. The impact was strong enough to make her see stars.

Another blow to the head, and she fell unconscious.

_**Some Time Later...**_

Hane's eyes blinked open for the second time that day. She realized that someone was holding her, and that she was in human form. She tensed, thinking that it was human, but an angry "Sh!" told her otherwise.

They were in the graveyard again. She was being held by Tsume, and with a wriggle, he let go of her. She landed on her feet, wincing slightly as her wounds screamed in protest. The cut wrapped around her wrist was bleeding again, and judging by the wetness on her face and back, so were her other wounds.

"What happened?" She murmured to Toboe, who was standing nearby, noticing Kiba on the ground and leaning against a gravestone.

"Kiba went crazy." He whispered back. "Zali stopped him, and you were knocked unconscious."

She glanced towards the alpha, who was standing over the hole the old man had been digging for his grave with some other members of his pack. Her heart tightening in her chest, she asked quietly, "The old man... Is he...?"

Toboe nodded his head sadly, just as Zali turned towards them. "I thought I told you not to interfere."

Hane held his gaze, refusing to wince at her stinging cuts. She realized the first slash had torn through her jacket and tank top, and leaving a gap in the fabric covering her back, which would explain why she felt the need to shiver.

"We have our own way of doing things around here." Zali continued, sounding weary.

"Living like a bunch of down and out strays?!" Kiba spat angrily. "Clinging to this disgusting place, and doing what you do, how can you call that a life?!"

"What the hell do you know about it!" Zali snarled angrily, his pupils narrowed with rage.

"You're pathetic!" Kiba snapped back.

Zali slumped, all the fight suddenly going out of him as he turned away. "You're kids... You're still young."

Hane stood hesitantly for a moment, her hand going into her pocket again. The lunar flower was still there. She limped over to the grave. "Hane, what are you doing?" Toboe asked, but she didn't answer. She stopped walking once she was beside Zali. Carefully, she drew out the wrinkled brown blossom. The elder wolf didn't make a sound, but she saw him start out of the corner of her eye.

With a sense of finality, Hane stretched her hand out, turned it, and opened her fingers. She watched as the rotten blossom fell, and heard Kiba's sharp intake of breath as he recognized what it was. It drifted down slowly, landing on the old wolf's shoulder without a sound.

And they all stood there, grief and rage cloaking them as the sun began to set.

* * *

**And there we are! To be continued in chapter 9! (Please review!) **


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